Be prepared to meet DMV requirements for license

Several letters have been printed from persons bewailing difficulties in renewing their driver’s license because they lack certified copies of their birth certificate or other proof of citizenship.

I guess they haven’t been reading the papers for the past five years and didn’t know this is now a requirement for people obtaining driver’s licenses or renewing them.

The 9/11 Commission recommended more careful identification for citizens, based on abuses of driver’s licenses by terrorists in this country. Oregon followed through with a good law passed in February 2008, backing up an executive order by Gov. Ted Kulongoski in 2007.

Cooperation and good will on the part of citizens in honoring the law helps us all. Some months before the due date for renewing a driver’s license, it’s advisable to check one’s records and gather what is needed to meet the requirements. It’s unreasonable to expect a distant state to pop up a birth record of 70-80 years ago overnight.

My personal experience in renewing my Oregon driver license in 2009 and transferring ownership of a car at the DMV in 2012 was pleasant and not time consuming at all. The DMV people were efficient, polite and helpful.

Elizabeth Van Staaveren

McMinnville