. Similar departments exist in
. The name "DMV" is not used in every state or province, nor are the traditional DMV functions handled by a single agency in every state, but the generic term is universally understood, particularly in the context of
Driver licensing and vehicle registration in the United States is handled by the
perform DMV functions. In Canada, driver licensing and vehicle registration is handled at the provincial government level.
prefers the name "Department of Motor Vehicles". The acronym "DMV" is most commonly used to describe the agency (where it exists); however, diverse titles are used in different jurisdictions.
| State |
Agency Name(s) |
Notes |
AlabamaAlabama is a state located in the southeastern region of the United States. It is bordered by Tennessee to the north, Georgia to the east, Florida and the Gulf of Mexico to the south, and Mississippi to the west. Alabama ranks 30th in total land area and ranks second in the size of its inland...
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Alabama Motor Vehicle Division |
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AlaskaAlaska is the largest state in the United States by area. It is situated in the northwest extremity of the North American continent, with Canada to the east, the Arctic Ocean to the north, and the Pacific Ocean to the west and south, with Russia further west across the Bering Strait...
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Alaska Division of Motor Vehicles |
Division of the Alaska Department of Administration; previously under the Alaska Department of Public Safety The Alaska Department of Public Safety is a law enforcement agency with its usual focus being the protection of life, property and wildlife resources in the state of Alaska in the United States....
and the Alaska Department of Revenue |
ArizonaArizona ; is a state located in the southwestern region of the United States. It is also part of the western United States and the mountain west. The capital and largest city is Phoenix...
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Arizona Department of Transportation Motor Vehicle Division |
Division of the Arizona Department of TransportationThe Arizona Department of Transportation is an Arizona state government agency charged with facilitating mobility within the state. In addition to managing the state's highway system, the agency is also involved with public transportation and municipal airports...
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ArkansasArkansas is a state located in the southern region of the United States. Its name is an Algonquian name of the Quapaw Indians. Arkansas shares borders with six states , and its eastern border is largely defined by the Mississippi River...
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Arkansas Office of Motor Vehicles |
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CaliforniaCalifornia is a state located on the West Coast of the United States. It is by far the most populous U.S. state, and the third-largest by land area...
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California Department of Motor VehiclesThe California Department of Motor Vehicles is the state agency responsible for the registration of motor vehicles and boats and the issuance of driver's licenses in the U.S. state of California. It is responsible for regulating new car dealers , commercial cargo carriers, private driving...
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ColoradoColorado is a U.S. state that encompasses much of the Rocky Mountains as well as the northeastern portion of the Colorado Plateau and the western edge of the Great Plains...
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Colorado Division of Motor Vehicles |
Division of the Colorado Department of Revenue |
ConnecticutConnecticut is a state in the New England region of the northeastern United States. It is bordered by Rhode Island to the east, Massachusetts to the north, and the state of New York to the west and the south .Connecticut is named for the Connecticut River, the major U.S. river that approximately...
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Connecticut Department of Motor Vehicles The Connecticut Department of Motor Vehicles is a state agency of Connecticut that manages state drivers licenses and vehicle registration. The agency has its headquarters in Wethersfield.-External links:*...
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| Delaware Delaware is a U.S. state located on the Atlantic Coast in the Mid-Atlantic region of the United States. It is bordered to the south and west by Maryland, and to the north by Pennsylvania...
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Delaware Department of Transportation The Delaware Department of Transportation is an agency of the U.S. state of Delaware. The Secretary of Transportation is Shailen Bhatt...
Division of Motor Vehicles |
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FloridaFlorida is a state in the southeastern United States, located on the nation's Atlantic and Gulf coasts. It is bordered to the west by the Gulf of Mexico, to the north by Alabama and Georgia and to the east by the Atlantic Ocean. With a population of 18,801,310 as measured by the 2010 census, it...
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Florida Department of Highway Safety and Motor Vehicles The Florida Department of Highway Safety and Motor Vehicles , formerly the Florida Department of Public Safety, is a state agency of Florida. The agency handles the issuing of drivers licenses and handles the registration and titling of automobiles, boats, and mobile homes...
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GeorgiaGeorgia is a state located in the southeastern United States. It was established in 1732, the last of the original Thirteen Colonies. The state is named after King George II of Great Britain. Georgia was the fourth state to ratify the United States Constitution, on January 2, 1788...
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Georgia Department of Driver Services (Driver Licenses)
Georgia Department of Revenue, Motor Vehicle Division (Vehicle Registration) |
Formerly Georgia Department of Motor Vehicle Safety (DMVS) |
HawaiiHawaii is the newest of the 50 U.S. states , and is the only U.S. state made up entirely of islands. It is the northernmost island group in Polynesia, occupying most of an archipelago in the central Pacific Ocean, southwest of the continental United States, southeast of Japan, and northeast of...
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Hawaii Department of Motor Vehicles http://www.dmv-department-of-motor-vehicles.com/HI_Hawaii_dmv_department_of_motor_vehicles.htm |
Is the only U.S. state where no part of the state government performs DMV functions; it has completely delegated vehicle registration and driver licensing to county governments |
IdahoIdaho is a state in the Rocky Mountain area of the United States. The state's largest city and capital is Boise. Residents are called "Idahoans". Idaho was admitted to the Union on July 3, 1890, as the 43rd state....
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Idaho Division of Motor Vehicles |
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IllinoisIllinois is the fifth-most populous state of the United States of America, and is often noted for being a microcosm of the entire country. With Chicago in the northeast, small industrial cities and great agricultural productivity in central and northern Illinois, and natural resources like coal,...
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Secretary of State of Illinois The Secretary of State of Illinois is one of the six elected executive state offices of the government of Illinois, and one of the 47 secretaries of states in the United States. The Illinois Secretary of State keeps the state records, laws, and archives, and is the state's vehicle registration and...
, Vehicle Services Department and Driver Services Department |
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IndianaIndiana is a US state, admitted to the United States as the 19th on December 11, 1816. It is located in the Midwestern United States and Great Lakes Region. With 6,483,802 residents, the state is ranked 15th in population and 16th in population density. Indiana is ranked 38th in land area and is...
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Indiana Bureau of Motor Vehicles |
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IowaIowa is a state located in the Midwestern United States, an area often referred to as the "American Heartland". It derives its name from the Ioway people, one of the many American Indian tribes that occupied the state at the time of European exploration. Iowa was a part of the French colony of New...
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Iowa Department of Transportation In the U.S. state of Iowa, the Iowa Department of Transportation is the state government organization responsible for the organization, construction, and maintenance of the primary highway system...
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KansasKansas is a US state located in the Midwestern United States. It is named after the Kansas River which flows through it, which in turn was named after the Kansa Native American tribe, which inhabited the area. The tribe's name is often said to mean "people of the wind" or "people of the south...
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Kansas Division of Motor Vehicles |
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KentuckyThe Commonwealth of Kentucky is a state located in the East Central United States of America. As classified by the United States Census Bureau, Kentucky is a Southern state, more specifically in the East South Central region. Kentucky is one of four U.S. states constituted as a commonwealth...
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Kentucky Transportation Cabinet The Kentucky Transportation Cabinet is Kentucky's state-funded agency charged with building and maintaining U.S...
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Division of Driver Licensing (driver's licenses), Motor Vehicle Licensing System (vehicle registration and tags). The state's Kentucky county clerks are responsible for the administration and issuance of motor vehicle driver's license, vehicle registrations, and titles. |
LouisianaLouisiana is a state located in the southern region of the United States of America. Its capital is Baton Rouge and largest city is New Orleans. Louisiana is the only state in the U.S. with political subdivisions termed parishes, which are local governments equivalent to counties...
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Louisiana Office of Motor Vehicles |
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MaineMaine is a state in the New England region of the northeastern United States, bordered by the Atlantic Ocean to the east and south, New Hampshire to the west, and the Canadian provinces of Quebec to the northwest and New Brunswick to the northeast. Maine is both the northernmost and easternmost...
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Maine Bureau of Motor Vehicles The Maine Bureau of Motor Vehicles is based in Augusta, Maine's capital. Branch offices are located throughout the state. It was formerly called the Maine Department of Motor Vehicles but was changed in 2007. The BMV is controlled by the Secretary of State.-External links:*...
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MarylandMaryland is a U.S. state located in the Mid Atlantic region of the United States, bordering Virginia, West Virginia, and the District of Columbia to its south and west; Pennsylvania to its north; and Delaware to its east...
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Maryland Motor Vehicle Administration |
Division of the Maryland Department of Transportation |
MassachusettsThe Commonwealth of Massachusetts is a state in the New England region of the northeastern United States of America. It is bordered by Rhode Island and Connecticut to the south, New York to the west, and Vermont and New Hampshire to the north; at its east lies the Atlantic Ocean. As of the 2010...
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Massachusetts Department of Transportation, Registry of Motor Vehicles |
Transferred from the Executive Office of Transportation on Nov 1, 2009. |
MichiganMichigan is a U.S. state located in the Great Lakes Region of the United States of America. The name Michigan is the French form of the Ojibwa word mishigamaa, meaning "large water" or "large lake"....
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Michigan Secretary of State The Secretary of State is the third-ranking official in the U.S. state of Michigan and one of four great offices of state. As the name implies, the officeholder was originally responsible for much of state government, but now the duties are similar to those of the other 47 secretaries of states...
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MinnesotaMinnesota is a U.S. state located in the Midwestern United States. The twelfth largest state of the U.S., it is the twenty-first most populous, with 5.3 million residents. Minnesota was carved out of the eastern half of the Minnesota Territory and admitted to the Union as the thirty-second state...
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Minnesota Department of Public Safety Division of Driver and Vehicle Services |
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MississippiMississippi is a U.S. state located in the Southern United States. Jackson is the state capital and largest city. The name of the state derives from the Mississippi River, which flows along its western boundary, whose name comes from the Ojibwe word misi-ziibi...
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Mississippi Department of Motor Vehicles |
MissouriMissouri is a US state located in the Midwestern United States, bordered by Iowa, Illinois, Kentucky, Tennessee, Arkansas, Oklahoma, Kansas and Nebraska. With a 2010 population of 5,988,927, Missouri is the 18th most populous state in the nation and the fifth most populous in the Midwest. It...
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Missouri Department of Revenue The Missouri Department of Revenue is a U.S. state government agency in Missouri created under the Missouri Constitution in 1945, which is responsible for ensuring the proper functioning of state and local government through the collection and distribution of state revenue, and administration of...
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MontanaMontana is a state in the Western United States. The western third of Montana contains numerous mountain ranges. Smaller, "island ranges" are found in the central third of the state, for a total of 77 named ranges of the Rocky Mountains. This geographical fact is reflected in the state's name,...
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Montana Department of Justice The Montana Department of Justice is a state law enforcement agency of Montana.The Montana Attorney General heads the agency.-Responsibilities:The Attorney General serves as 1 of 5 members of the state Land Board...
Driver Services |
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NebraskaNebraska is a state on the Great Plains of the Midwestern United States. The state's capital is Lincoln and its largest city is Omaha, on the Missouri River....
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Nebraska Department of Motor Vehicles |
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NevadaNevada is a state in the western, mountain west, and southwestern regions of the United States. With an area of and a population of about 2.7 million, it is the 7th-largest and 35th-most populous state. Over two-thirds of Nevada's people live in the Las Vegas metropolitan area, which contains its...
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Nevada Department of Motor Vehicles The Nevada Department of Motor Vehicles is based in Carson City, Nevada's capital. The DMV operates 16 offices across the state. The agency is responsible for issuing driver licenses and vehicle registration....
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Formerly the Department of Motor Vehicles and Public Safety |
| New Hampshire New Hampshire is a state in the New England region of the northeastern United States of America. The state was named after the southern English county of Hampshire. It is bordered by Massachusetts to the south, Vermont to the west, Maine and the Atlantic Ocean to the east, and the Canadian...
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New Hampshire Division of Motor Vehicles |
Division of the New Hampshire Department of Safety |
New JerseyNew Jersey is a state in the Northeastern and Middle Atlantic regions of the United States. , its population was 8,791,894. It is bordered on the north and east by the state of New York, on the southeast and south by the Atlantic Ocean, on the west by Pennsylvania and on the southwest by Delaware...
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New Jersey Motor Vehicle Commission The New Jersey Motor Vehicle Commission is the governmental agency responsible for titling, registering and inspecting automobiles and licensing drivers in the U.S. state of New Jersey....
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New Jersey has differing titles for the high office holders in this part of government: The head of the New Jersey Department of Transportation The New Jersey Department of Transportation is the agency responsible for transportation issues and policy in New Jersey. It is headed by the Commissioner of Transportation...
is referred to as the "Commissioner," while the head of the MVC/MVS is referred to as the "Chief Administrator." |
New MexicoNew Mexico is a state located in the southwest and western regions of the United States. New Mexico is also usually considered one of the Mountain States. With a population density of 16 per square mile, New Mexico is the sixth-most sparsely inhabited U.S...
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New Mexico Motor Vehicle Division |
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New YorkNew York is a state in the Northeastern region of the United States. It is the nation's third most populous state. New York is bordered by New Jersey and Pennsylvania to the south, and by Connecticut, Massachusetts and Vermont to the east...
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New York State Department of Motor Vehicles The New York State Department of Motor Vehicles is the governmental agency responsible for registering and inspecting automobiles and other motor vehicles as well as NYS Enhanced Driver License/Driver License and Enhanced Non-Driver Photo ID Card/Non-Driver Photo ID Card in the U.S...
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North CarolinaNorth Carolina is a state located in the southeastern United States. The state borders South Carolina and Georgia to the south, Tennessee to the west and Virginia to the north. North Carolina contains 100 counties. Its capital is Raleigh, and its largest city is Charlotte...
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North Carolina Division of Motor Vehicles The North Carolina Division of Motor Vehicles is the division of the North Carolina Department of Transportation which oversees driver licenses and vehicle registrations within the state of North Carolina, USA....
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Division of the North Carolina Department of Transportation The North Carolina Department of Transportation is responsible for building, repairing, and operating highways, bridges, and other modes of transportation, including ferries in the U.S. state of North Carolina.-History:...
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North DakotaNorth Dakota is a state located in the Midwestern region of the United States of America, along the Canadian border. The state is bordered by Canada to the north, Minnesota to the east, South Dakota to the south and Montana to the west. North Dakota is the 19th-largest state by area in the U.S....
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North Dakota Motor Vehicle Division (vehicle registrations), North Dakota Drivers License and Traffic Safety Division (driver licensing) |
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OhioOhio is a Midwestern state in the United States. The 34th largest state by area in the U.S.,it is the 7th‑most populous with over 11.5 million residents, containing several major American cities and seven metropolitan areas with populations of 500,000 or more.The state's capital is Columbus...
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Ohio Bureau of Motor Vehicles |
Division of the Ohio Department of Public Safety The Ohio Department of Public Safety is a government agency in the U.S. state of Ohio. The Department is responsible for the protection and safety of residents and visitors.The Department of Public Safety's headquarters is located in Columbus, Ohio....
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OklahomaOklahoma is a state located in the South Central region of the United States of America. With an estimated 3,751,351 residents as of the 2010 census and a land area of 68,667 square miles , Oklahoma is the 28th most populous and 20th-largest state...
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Oklahoma Department of Public Safety The Oklahoma Department of Public Safety is a department of the government of Oklahoma. Under the supervision of the Oklahoma Secretary of Safety and Security, DPS provides for the safety of Oklahomans and the administration of justice in the state...
(driver licensing), Oklahoma Tax CommissionThe Oklahoma Tax Commission is the Oklahoma state government agency that collects taxes and enforces the internal revenue laws of the state. The Commission is composed of three members appointed by the Governor of Oklahoma with the approval of the Oklahoma Senate...
(vehicle registrations) |
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OregonOregon is a state in the Pacific Northwest region of the United States. It is located on the Pacific coast, with Washington to the north, California to the south, Nevada on the southeast and Idaho to the east. The Columbia and Snake rivers delineate much of Oregon's northern and eastern...
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Oregon Department of Transportation The Oregon Department of Transportation is a department of the state government of the U.S. state of Oregon responsible for systems of transportation. It was first established in 1969. It had been preceded by the Oregon State Highway Department which, along with the Oregon State Highway...
Driver and Motor Vehicles Services Division (DMV) |
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PennsylvaniaThe Commonwealth of Pennsylvania is a U.S. state that is located in the Northeastern and Mid-Atlantic regions of the United States. The state borders Delaware and Maryland to the south, West Virginia to the southwest, Ohio to the west, New York and Ontario, Canada, to the north, and New Jersey to...
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Pennsylvania Department of TransportationThe Pennsylvania Department of Transportation oversees transportation issues in the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania. The administrator of PennDOT is the Pennsylvania Secretary of Transportation, currently Barry Schoch Presently, PennDOT supports over of state roads and highways, about 25,000...
(PennDOT) Driver and Vehicle Services |
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Rhode IslandThe state of Rhode Island and Providence Plantations, more commonly referred to as Rhode Island , is a state in the New England region of the United States. It is the smallest U.S. state by area...
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Rhode Island Division of Motor Vehicles |
Division of the Department of Revenue |
South CarolinaSouth Carolina is a state in the Deep South of the United States that borders Georgia to the south, North Carolina to the north, and the Atlantic Ocean to the east. Originally part of the Province of Carolina, the Province of South Carolina was one of the 13 colonies that declared independence...
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South Carolina Department of Motor Vehicles |
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South DakotaSouth Dakota is a state located in the Midwestern region of the United States. It is named after the Lakota and Dakota Sioux American Indian tribes. Once a part of Dakota Territory, South Dakota became a state on November 2, 1889. The state has an area of and an estimated population of just over...
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South Dakota Department of Revenue, Motor Vehicle Division |
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TennesseeTennessee is a U.S. state located in the Southeastern United States. It has a population of 6,346,105, making it the nation's 17th-largest state by population, and covers , making it the 36th-largest by total land area...
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Tennessee Department of Revenue The Tennessee Department of Revenue is an agency within the Tennessee state government of about 1600 people which is responsible for the "administration of state tax laws and motor vehicle title and registration laws established by the legislature and the collection of taxes and fees associated...
, Taxpayer and Vehicle Services Division |
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TexasTexas is the second largest U.S. state by both area and population, and the largest state by area in the contiguous United States.The name, based on the Caddo word "Tejas" meaning "friends" or "allies", was applied by the Spanish to the Caddo themselves and to the region of their settlement in...
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Texas Department of Motor Vehicles The Texas Department of Motor Vehicles is a state agency of Texas, headquartered in Austin. The agency handles vehicle registration and titling, authorizes operating authorities of motor carriers, and gives grants to law enforcement agencies to increase public awareness about automobile theft and...
(vehicle title and registration) and Texas Department of Public SafetyThe Texas Department of Public Safety is a department of the government of the state of Texas. The DPS is responsible for statewide law enforcement and vehicle regulation. The Public Safety Commission oversees the DPS. Its five members are appointed by the Governor of Texas and confirmed by the...
, Driver License Division (driver licensing) |
Vehicle titles and registration were formerly provided by the Texas Department of TransportationThe Texas Department of Transportation is a governmental agency in the U.S. state of Texas. Its stated mission is to "work cooperatively to provide safe, effective and efficient movement of people and goods" throughout the state...
. On November 2, 2009, these services were transferred to the new Texas Department of Motor Vehicles (TxDMV). |
UtahUtah is a state in the Western United States. It was the 45th state to join the Union, on January 4, 1896. Approximately 80% of Utah's 2,763,885 people live along the Wasatch Front, centering on Salt Lake City. This leaves vast expanses of the state nearly uninhabited, making the population the...
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Utah Division of Motor Vehicles |
Utah has a separate department that handles drivers' licenses and identification cards |
VermontVermont is a state in the New England region of the northeastern United States of America. The state ranks 43rd in land area, , and 45th in total area. Its population according to the 2010 census, 630,337, is the second smallest in the country, larger only than Wyoming. It is the only New England...
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Vermont Department of Motor Vehicles The Vermont Department of Motor Vehicles is the governmental agency responsible for registering and inspecting automobiles and other motor vehicles as well as licensing drivers in the U.S. state of Vermont.-Driver licensing:...
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Subunit of the state Agency of Transportation The Vermont Agency of Transportation is a Vermont executive agency . Its purpose is to develop and execute policy on transportation for the U.S. state of Vermont. The agency was created in 1979 by combining the departments of Highway, Motor Vehicles, Aeronautics and Public Transit...
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VirginiaThe Commonwealth of Virginia , is a U.S. state on the Atlantic Coast of the Southern United States. Virginia is nicknamed the "Old Dominion" and sometimes the "Mother of Presidents" after the eight U.S. presidents born there...
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Virginia Department of Motor Vehicles The Virginia Department of Motor Vehicles is the governmental agency responsible for registering and titling automobiles and other motor vehicles as well as licensing drivers in the U.S. state of Virginia.-Motor vehicle registration:...
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| Washington |
Washington Department of Licensing |
Also handles BoatA boat is a watercraft of any size designed to float or plane, to provide passage across water. Usually this water will be inland or in protected coastal areas. However, boats such as the whaleboat were designed to be operated from a ship in an offshore environment. In naval terms, a boat is a...
, BusinessA business is an organization engaged in the trade of goods, services, or both to consumers. Businesses are predominant in capitalist economies, where most of them are privately owned and administered to earn profit to increase the wealth of their owners. Businesses may also be not-for-profit...
, and ProfessionalA professional is a person who is paid to undertake a specialised set of tasks and to complete them for a fee. The traditional professions were doctors, lawyers, clergymen, and commissioned military officers. Today, the term is applied to estate agents, surveyors , environmental scientists,...
licenses |
West VirginiaWest Virginia is a state in the Appalachian and Southeastern regions of the United States, bordered by Virginia to the southeast, Kentucky to the southwest, Ohio to the northwest, Pennsylvania to the northeast and Maryland to the east...
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West Virginia Division of Motor Vehicles |
Division of the West Virginia Department of Transportation |
WisconsinWisconsin is a U.S. state located in the north-central United States and is part of the Midwest. It is bordered by Minnesota to the west, Iowa to the southwest, Illinois to the south, Lake Michigan to the east, Michigan to the northeast, and Lake Superior to the north. Wisconsin's capital is...
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Wisconsin Division of Motor Vehicles |
Division of the Wisconsin Department of Transportation |
| District of Columbia |
District of Columbia Department of Motor Vehicles |
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American SamoaAmerican Samoa is an unincorporated territory of the United States located in the South Pacific Ocean, southeast of the sovereign state of Samoa...
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American Samoa Department of Public Safety |
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GuamGuam is an organized, unincorporated territory of the United States located in the western Pacific Ocean. It is one of five U.S. territories with an established civilian government. Guam is listed as one of 16 Non-Self-Governing Territories by the Special Committee on Decolonization of the United...
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Guam Department of Revenue and Taxation Motor Vehicle Division |
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Northern Mariana IslandsThe Northern Mariana Islands, officially the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands , is a commonwealth in political union with the United States, occupying a strategic region of the western Pacific Ocean. It consists of 15 islands about three-quarters of the way from Hawaii to the Philippines...
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Northern Mariana Islands Department of Public Safety Bureau of Motor Vehicles |
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Puerto RicoPuerto Rico , officially the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico , is an unincorporated territory of the United States, located in the northeastern Caribbean, east of the Dominican Republic and west of both the United States Virgin Islands and the British Virgin Islands.Puerto Rico comprises an...
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Puerto Rico Driver Services Directorate |
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United States Virgin IslandsThe Virgin Islands of the United States are a group of islands in the Caribbean that are an insular area of the United States. The islands are geographically part of the Virgin Islands archipelago and are located in the Leeward Islands of the Lesser Antilles.The U.S...
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United States Virgin Islands Police Department The United States Virgin Islands Police Department is the law enforcement agency for the United States Virgin Islands, which has jurisdiction anywhere in the territory. It was created to protect the lives and property of United States Virgin Islanders....
Motor Vehicle Bureau |
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Furthermore, there is much diversity in how the Department of Motor Vehicles (or equivalent) is situated within the structure of a state's government.
where no part of the state government performs DMV functions; it has completely delegated vehicle registration and driver licensing to county governments.
, the Transportation Cabinet, and the Department of Revenue, Taxpayer Vehicle Services Division, respectively, set the policies and designs for licenses and vehicle registration; but the actual registration and licensing are handled by offices of the county governments.
, which is not part of any state, the DMV (formerly the Bureau of Motor Vehicle Services) is part of the city government.
s (which are mandatory in a number of U.S. states with adverse weather conditions which make vehicle maintenance a high priority). In
, the Department of Motor Vehicles handles both driver licensing and vehicle registration, while the
and the Department of Environmental Quality administer safety inspection and emission inspection, respectively. Note that the program is simply
by the state; actual inspections are performed by specific authorized employees of privately owned gas stations and garages licensed by the state.
In some states, the DMV is not a separate cabinet-level department, but instead is a division or bureau within a larger department. Examples of departments which perform DMV functions include the Department of Justice (
). In
, the Division of Motor Vehicles is a division of the Department of Safety. In
Some states do not separate DMV functions into distinct organizational entities at all, but simply bundle them into a laundry list of responsibilities assigned to an existing government agency. For example, in the state of Washington, the Department of Licensing is responsible for driver's licenses, and vehicle and boat registrations in addition to most other business and occupational licensing. In
, the Secretary of State's offices perform responsibilities which would be handled by the DMV in other states.
Almost all long-term residents ("long term" in this case means over 30 days) of a state who wish to operate motor vehicles must possess a driver's license issued by their state DMV, and their vehicles must show license plates (and current registration tags or stickers) issued by that agency.
Armed Forces active duty servicemembers are an exception to this general rule; by Federal law, servicemembers do not change legal residence when relocating to a new duty station unless they take voluntary action to do so. These individuals have the option of retaining the license and vehicle registration of their legal residence or obtaining a new license and registration locally. Some states also let out-of-state college students maintain their existing license and/or registration.
, rather than a state. Drivers of these vehicles must still be licensed with their home state, however.
The Office of Foreign Missions at the U.S. Department of State has a Diplomatic Motor Vehicles program which issues driver's licenses to foreign diplomats and their dependents, registers their vehicles, and issues special diplomatic license plates.
In countries with no national identification card (like the United States), driver's licenses have often become the
identification card for many purposes, and DMVs have effectively become the agency responsible for verifying identity in their respective states. See
. The
of 2005 is an attempt to provide a national standard for identification cards in the United States.
In some states, besides conducting the written and hands-on driving tests that are a prerequisite to earning a driver's license, DMVs also regulate private driving schools and their instructors.
DMVs are responsible for providing an identification number for vehicles, either with a permanent
or temporary tag. See also Vehicle registration plates of the United States. A
information such as odometer history in order to prevent automobile-related crimes such as
Many DMVs allow third parties to issue registration materials. These may include companies that specialize in processing registration application paperwork (often called "tag agents") or
. Tag agents are given direct access to DMV systems (as in Louisiana
). Dealers often use their state DMV's electronic vehicle registration (EVR) program.
The certification of ownership of automotive vehicles is handled by each states DMV normally by issuing a
. The types of vehicles certified by a DMV varies by state. While almost all DMVs title vehicles that are driven on roadways, the responsibility to title boats, mobile homes, and off-road vehicles can be the responsibility of other agencies such as a
As the issuer of vehicle titles, DMVs are also usually responsible for recording liens made with an automobile as collateral on a secured
. Several DMVs provide an
Duties of the DMV include the enforcement of state and federal laws regarding motor vehicles. Many departments have within their ranks sworn law enforcement officers whose purpose it is to enforce DMV regulations which are codified in state law. In
, for example, the DMV contains an element known as "License and Theft." Stolen motor vehicles are tracked down by "Inspectors," sworn law enforcement officers of the state employed by DMV, and suspected cases of fraudulent registrations, license plates, and/or theft of those elements, are investigated. Inspectors also investigate independent inspection stations licensed by the DMV. At times, some of these stations violate DMV regulations codified by law. The most common of these violations is passing inspection for a vehicle with windows tinted below the legal limits. The penalty for such a violation is a $1000 fine and, for first time offenders, a revocation of the inspection permit for 30 days. Inspection stations face permanent permit revocation for subsequent offenses. In
, the Division of Field Investigations (DFI) is the criminal investigations arm of the DMV. It employs investigators to combat auto theft, identity theft, and fraudulent document-related crimes that take place in New York. These investigators are armed New York State peace officers with statewide authority to enforce laws and handle investigations.
Compared to standard law enforcement officers, DMV law enforcement agents operate with greater flexibility when it comes to their specific police powers. If a person under investigation by the DMV refuses to answer questions or meet with DMV law enforcement agents, their registration and tags may be canceled. Although a citizen has a constitutional right not to speak or meet with sworn law enforcement officers while under investigation, no constitutional right protects a person's motor vehicle registration with a state agency. Another example of this flexibility of police powers is found in the policies of many states regarding suspected
offenders. If a person is stopped by police under suspicion of driving while impaired, and refuses a breath test to determine
, the DMV will automatically revoke that person's license for one year. Even if evidence of that person's impairment is found to be insufficient at trial, the individual loses their driving privileges simply for having refused the sobriety test.