A slew of in-person services that were suspended by the New Jersey Motor Vehicle Commission (MVC) due to the pandemic could be returning, provided a recent bill is enacted.
“The continued delays and congestion at MVC facilities are inexcusable, and it is obvious the commission still needs some guidance from the Legislature on how to return to pre-pandemic operations,” said State Sen. Kristin Corrado (R-40), who sponsored the bill.
If enacted, the bill would require the agency to fully reopen prior to the shutdown and new protocols of services related to COVID-19.
Return to Pre-Pandemic Operations
“My legislation will return all MVC facilities to pre-pandemic status so that the people of this state can get the help they deserve in a timely manner,” she said.
Although operations at MVC have been restored at most locations after being shuttered at the start of the pandemic, vehicle and license transactions have not been offered in the same facility.
No More Excuses
“The MVC needs to stop using COVID as an excuse for its subpar service,” added Corrado. “If private sector businesses can remain open and operate normally, despite the challenges of COVID-19, we should expect nothing less of critical government services like the MVC.”
The Passaic County lawmaker argued making constituents travel to two separate MVC locations for the paperwork needed to drive was unacceptable, and said it represented an unnecessary burden and cost for the people of New Jersey.
“We are more than two years into this pandemic and there are still some MVC employees that are working from home and facilities that offer some services but not all,” she said.
Prior Complaints Against MVC
This was not the first time Corrado took the agency to task, as she regularly worked to expand operations at the agency’s facilities during the pandemic.
When the agency first reopened July 7, 2020, she called the agency’s performance “an abysmal failure,” and argued there was “no preparation, no planning, no leadership” connected to the reopening.
In July 2020, she called the closure of the Wayne facility a “slight” to drivers who were waiting in long lines for documents and paperwork.
“Only a state department can afford to come to a full stop. No other enterprise has that luxury,” Corrado said at the time. “If the MVC was a business, they would be out of business.”
You should do a story about Unemployment Offices still being closed. The DOL instituted a new policy requiring every person who signs up for unemployment to be verified by a third party company. All well and good if they instructed their employees on how to resolve issues. If you don’t own a computer you are unable to receive that verification and Unemployment does not send out paper forms. There are THOUSANDS of New Jerseyans who are unable to collect their benefits because of glitches in the system and there is NOWHERE to go to resolve your problems! Help us. Open your local offices. Call your employees BACK into the office.