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Pennington County treasurer warns of brief motor‑vehicle office closure for statewide system conversion
Summary
Pennington County Treasurer Annette Brandt told commissioners the state will shut down the statewide motor‑vehicle system Feb. 7 to 17 for a data conversion; the county office will close Feb. 13 at 11 a.m. and reopen Feb. 18 for in‑person motor‑vehicle transactions. Staff will work some holiday hours to process mail and minimize customer delays.
Pennington County Treasurer Annette Brandt told the Jan. 21 commission meeting that the State of South Dakota is converting to a new statewide motor‑vehicle system and that county offices will temporarily lose access during the statewide cutover.
Brandt said the state will shut the current system to counties on Feb. 7 and that the county’s motor‑vehicle window will close at 11 a.m. on Thursday, Feb. 13, to prepare its records for conversion. The county plans to reopen for in‑person motor‑vehicle services on Monday, Feb. 18. Brandt said her office will work through some mail and do behind‑the‑scenes processing before face‑to‑face service resumes in an effort to minimize first‑day delays.
Brandt asked commissioners to allow the county to use a half‑day closure on Feb. 13 to perform the cutover work and described outreach steps the office is taking: social media posts, billboards and public service flyers to remind residents they can renew early (up to 90 days in advance) and that vehicle purchases generally require in‑person registration within 45 days. Commissioners asked about contingency plans; Brandt said there is no contingency if the state shuts the system—counties cannot access records until the state opens the new system—but staff have been participating in training and testing the new platform and are prepared to troubleshoot expected issues.
Ending: The board accepted the informational report; staff will continue public outreach and bring any needed policy or contingency proposals back to the commission if failures or unexpected problems occur during the conversion.
