The long-awaited North Carolina Department of Motor Vehicles (NCDMV) audit by state Auditor Dave Boliek’s office is just weeks away from being completed and released.
“It’s going really well,” he told Carolina Journal, in a recent exclusive interview. “I think some of the challenges with the DMV audit have been collection of data and the use of data in the form the data is in. Again, we’re dealing with a lot of legacy computer systems, the complexity of how the DMV works, and the interconnectivity with the Department of Transportation has also been a challenge. But I’ve got 14 auditors working on that project.”
Boliek had campaigned on the issue before he was elected in November.
Several issues, including trying to book an appointment online and waiting in long lines at a DMV office, have plagued many North Carolinians the past few years.
Former state Rep. Paul Tine was selected as the new NCDMV commissioner last month, after then-DMV Commissioner Wayne Goodwin announced in February that he would step down when his term ended.
The NC House Oversight Committee grilled Goodwin at a hearing the next day about the DMV’s failures.
Boliek told Council of State members in March that his office divided the DMV audit into multiple parts to complete a full floor-to-ceiling audit.
“Ultimately, we want to be part of the solution, and we want to help the new commissioner and the governor’s office get it right; that’s the goal,” he told CJ. “The DMV is not a partisan issue. The DMV is a North Carolina issue… We’re on the precipice of being able to release to the public a comprehensive report of the state of the DMV, with some recommendations for change. And with a new commissioner, Paul Tine, we think a lot of people have confidence in his bringing an outside, private-sector approach to helping work through the issues.”
Boliek said he has met with Tine, calling him a “very capable and energized leader for the DMV,” and wants to work with him, his team, and Democrat Gov. Josh Stein.
He’s hopeful that many of his office’s recommendations will be taken, because they wouldn’t be given if the auditor’s office didn’t think they could work.
“This is not a ‘gotcha audit;’ that’s not the purpose,” he said, adding that the purposes of the DMV audit were multiple.
“One was to continue to shine a light on the fact that this is a problem and that a solution needs to be formed. And I felt like the auditor’s office could really push that into the public arena. And quite frankly, I think we’ve been successful with that,” Boliek said. “We have done that. Second, we can come up with some common-sense recommendations to get the ball moving. It is going to take time, but I think there are some pretty quick steps we can take to alleviate the problems that exist right now in terms of the long lines and wait times. And that’s been our real focus.”
He told CJ that they have employed experts with a data-centered approach to help his staff with the new design aspect for the agency.
The post NCDMV audit nearing release, says state Auditor Boliek first appeared on Carolina Journal.