October 3, 2024
To City Managers of AD 72 and South Orange County, City Council Members and Constituents:
I shared the following statement with local media regarding my recent meeting with the Director of the California Department of Motor Vehicles, Steve Gordon, about the Laguna Hills DMV site closure.
“Our plea today fell on deaf ears. According to DMV Director Gordon, they had been working to close the Laguna Hills DMV for two years! Unfortunately they planned on replacing it with only one new location, which did not come to fruition. Without an alternative, and the State now facing a budget crisis that has the Governor mandating cuts to Department budgets, thousands of constituents will be left without an essential service in their area. To that end, my office will do everything we can to assist people in working with the DMV on their needs during this very abrupt transition.”
Today, I also sent the following communication directly to the Director, including letters from the Cities of Aliso Viejo, Dana Point, Huntington Beach, Laguna Beach, Laguna Hills, Laguna Niguel, Laguna Woods, Lake Forest, Newport Beach, San Clemente, San Juan Capistrano and Seal Beach as well as the League of California Cities/Orange County and the South Orange County Economic Coalition, plus US Rep. Young Kim – all asking the DMV please to reconsider closing this Laguna Hills location. (I further reference that we also have hundreds of letters from individual constituents.)
I do not have the ability to ignore my constituents. While I am certain it was disappointing for the DMV that your one and only option site was denied, the City of Mission Viejo is not in my District – and I appeal again for the Department to consider the nearly 1 Million people who live in South Orange County – and the significant number of seniors and families with new drivers who need in-person visits to the DMV.
As your tone and tenor regarding the confirmed closure of the Laguna Hills DMV was unambiguous, I then ask for you to address the following:
- You offered communication on how to direct constituents regarding the closure by close of business yesterday; please send.
- You indicated no employees will be laid off; please share where they will be sent and what hours will be at the remaining OC facilities.
- Please demonstrate how each of the open offices will handle the capacity of added appointments for required in-person services and update the Orange County Delegation monthly until the need levels out.
- You indicated site visit numbers were not accurate; please share the number of visits to each OC field office annually.
- Specific to the City of Laguna Woods, my constituents (according to the United States Census Bureau the average age is 75.1) have asked to explore:
o Hosting a self-service DMV Kiosk at City Hall
o Becoming a “DMV partner” (Per the DMV website: “Businesses authorized by the DMV to handle certain registration services.”)
o Obtaining financial assistance to provide $0 taxi rides to and from the DMV.
The City has an existing subsidized taxi program that could be extended to serve this purpose; however, additional funds would be required due to anticipated high demand.
Again, as an elected California State Assemblymember, I do not have the luxury of disregarding the concerns of my constituents. I believe our government needs to provide essential services and a number of DMV services are essential, especially to an aging population. I look forward to the answers to my request above by Monday, October 7, 2024 – in advance of the October 18 closure. Thank you.
Thank you all for communicating your concerns and opinions on this issue. I will continue to work to ensure that all constituents have easy access to essential services.
