A closed Oregon DMV office. (Courtesy/Department of Transportation)
Six Oregon DMV offices are temporarily closed due to staff shortages, including one in Marion County.
The state Driver & Motor Vehicle Services department on May 31 closed its Stayton office, as well as offices in Ashland, Cave Junction, Lebanon, Redmond and Sandy, according to a news release.
“We’re preparing for the busiest time of year for DMV by temporarily redeploying staff to fewer offices,” DMV Administrator Amy Joyce said in the release. “Lately we’ve been closing offices – without notice – across the state when we don’t have enough staff that day. We need to stabilize the staffing so customers can know ahead of time which offices are open. As we recruit and train new employees, we will work to reopen offices and restore full business hours, and that will take several months at least.”
Oregonians needing a DMV service should always check to see if they can get it done online, as the department has added over two dozen services in the past three years, Joyce said.
Some services must be done in person including adding the Real ID option to a license, which is required for flying on a passenger airplane in the U.S. or visiting a federal facility that requires ID for entry.
Oregonians can check whether their local office is open at OregonDMV.com.
DMV offices also reduced business hours in Astoria, Canyonville, Downtown Portland, Heppner, Hermiston, Junction City, Klamath Falls, Lake Oswego, Lincoln City and Milton-Freewater.
Drive tests are in especially high demand as many teens may get their license during the summer, and drive test appointments through the DMV fill up quickly, the news release said. An approved Oregon testing company is more costly but offers appointments that are sooner and potentially on evenings or weekends.
The DMV keeps a list of approved third-party test providers.
-Ardeshir Tabrizian
