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Driver's License and ID Megacenter Now Open In Tulsa

Matt Trotter
/
KWGS

Tulsa’s state ID megacenter opened for business Monday morning.

The Department of Public Safety is offering a variety of renewal and replacement services there on a walk-in basis, including REAL ID compliant cards. Tulsa and Oklahoma City megacenters are meant to help address a backlog that created months-long delays for hundreds of thousands of Oklahomans. Computer system problems were one of several contributing factors.

"To be honest with you, when the pandemic hit, of course, that really thrust the world into chaos anyway, but it had an impact on us as well. We weren't able to service the public like we should have been able to, and that put us behind. So, now we've been trying to catch up," said DPS Chief of Administration Pat Mays.

Mays said workers at the megacenters can process just about any transaction that doesn’t require a driving test, including driver's license renewal and replacement, out-of-state license transfers, and issuing learner's permits for applicants who have completed driver's education or passed a written test at an Oklahoma Career Tech.

"We picked services that we could process quickly to get the public through and be able to process as many as we could," Mays said.

Mays said business was steady Monday morning, but there was no hours-long wait like they’ve seen in Oklahoma City. Services are first come, first served.

Appointments at tag agencies, which were hit by many of the same problems that caused the state’s delays, can be hard to come by or keep, in some cases. Rick Minkler accompanied his wife to the Tulsa megacenter Monday to get her license renewed and said they waited maybe 10 minutes.

"We had an appointment down the street here at a tag agency four different times, and they canceled even today," Minkler said. "I just was so aggravated, I said, 'Let's go up here and try it.' Oh, I would have came here any time."

The Tulsa megacenter is in Kensington Business Center at 7130 S Lewis Ave., Suite 190. It’s open Monday through Saturday 6:30 a.m. to 10 p.m. through Jan. 7. Payments can be made with Visa, Mastercard or Discover credit or debit cards. No cash or checks are accepted.

Applicants for any service must have physical copies of required documents that are official or certified copies.

Those applying for REAL ID compliant identification must bring proof of their identity and legal presence in the U.S., which can be a state birth certificate, unexpired U.S. passport, naturalization certificate, unexpired foreign passport with a valid U.S. visa and I-94, consular report of birth abroad, unexpired permanent resident card or unexpired employment authorization card. If someone's name is different from the proof of identity provided, they must also provide a legal document showing proof of their name change, like a marriage license, divorce decree or adoption decree.

REAL ID applicants must also know their Social Security number and two forms of proof of their current Oklahoma address. A full list of acceptable documents is available at the DPS website. REAL ID-compliant

The fiscal year 2022 state appropriations bill included $6.6 million for the DPS megacenters.

Matt Trotter joined KWGS as a reporter in 2013. Before coming to Public Radio Tulsa, he was the investigative producer at KJRH. His freelance work has appeared in the Los Angeles Times and on MSNBC and CNN.
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