Would we love to live in gorgeous California but never set foot in a DMV again? Yes, please

Some things about California are forever: Natural beauty. Ethnic diversity. World-changing innovation. The feeling of being trapped in a mind-numbing stupor each time we enter a California Department of Motor Vehicles office.

We learn these realities at an early age in our state and we come to cherish our blessings of amazing people and topography. But as if to make sure we don’t get too full of ourselves, we also learn to dread the DMV and its soul-crushing wait times for routine service.

DMV dread is multi-faceted but can be summarized within one of the most ironic questions known to California: How could the DMV be such a technological black hole when it serves people who live in the most technologically advanced corner of the world?

Those thoughts came to mind on Tuesday when The Bee reported that the DMV had an idea to undergo a revamp so that future generations of Californians can grow up without the pain of waiting in a DMV lines.

DMV Director Steve Gordon wants $60 million in funding to bring the DMV into the 21st Century.

“With the new funding he’s requesting, Gordon said the DMV will shift to a mobile-first strategy, one where customers can meet nearly all their needs without ever stepping foot inside a branch office,” The Bee reported.

We think this is a great idea for California. If COVID-19 caused the DMV to realize it should provide services more efficiently, without forcing us into one of their warehouse-style buildings, then that’s a rare benefit from an otherwise tragic pandemic.

We think this could be a worthy investment for Gov. Gavin Newsom and the state legislature to consider. If there is one state agency that is both essential to our lives and yet antithetical to the image of California, it’s the DMV.

We have to drive — cars are central to our state culture — and right now we have to deal with DMV inefficiencies to drive.

But before we pop the Napa Valley sparkling wine on a new DMV future, let’s remember whom we are dealing with. The efforts by the agency to move us all to Real ID, for example, have been fraught. Have you tried to complete that process in a timely manner lately? It’s not as daunting as applying for the state bar exam, but it’s not quick and easy either.

The DMV in Southern California has a brand new bribery scandal on its hands. These scandals seem to come every few years. Remember the former DMV employee sentenced to two years in federal prison for taking money to alter the DMV database?

Until — or unless — this agency is fully re-imagined under Gordon or someone else, any investment in the DMV must come with an investment of skepticism in the ability of the agency to truly change.

It’s good that Gordon wants to shrink the DMV’s footprint and move most of its services to storefronts. DMV offices are often too cavernous and too reminiscent of the worst stereotype of a gray, lifeless office.

Let’s start the process of changing the DMV for the better — for the benefit of future Californians and those of us who have suffered enough already.

This story was originally published June 2, 2021 at 5:00 AM.