No New Driver Licenses Until Statewide Computer Problem Is Fixed

A statewide computer problem is causing chaos at Oklahoma tag agencies and  led to problems for law enforcement.

According to the Department of Public Safety, the state’s driver license system is down and tag agencies are unable to process driver licenses or ID requests.

Additionally, some law enforcement agencies say they couldn’t run people’s information for a while.

“What are they going to do?  What happens if they get pulled over, they need it for a prescription?” asked John Haefeker from Central Tag Agency.  “Unfortunately, we don’t have a lot of answers for them.”

People trying to get or renew a driver’s license or ID are out of luck until a state-run system is fixed.

The DPS says the problem started when storms blew through the state over the weekend causing a major outage.

Law enforcement agencies have also reported problems with the Oklahoma Law Enforcement Telecommunications System.

“It did affect us for a short period of time from about 3 a.m. to 6:30, 7:00 this morning.  During that time, we couldn’t do any checks on driving records, driver’s licenses, things of that nature,” said Tulsa Police Sergeant Shane Tuell.  “if it was down for a significant period of time for us, yes, it would cause a problem and would kind of hinder the things that we do.”

Police say there is a grace period for getting your license renewed, but within reason.

As for people traveling or trying to purchase something with an ID or driver license, that could be a problem depending on what it’s for.

There is no word yet on when things will be back to normal.

“Unfortunately, they are ID-less until the state gets this problem fixed,” said Haefeker.

TPD says that they are not experiencing the problem anymore and tag agencies say they hope the system will be fixed by Wednesday.