For more than a year the deadlines to renew driver's licenses have been extended, but the Aug. 6 extension issued Tuesday will probably be the last.
Because thousands of licenses and permits will need to be renewed in the coming months, Honolulu is preparing to open four Satellite City Hall locations on Saturdays starting July to help ease the backlog. Only the Downtown, Hawaii Kai, Pearlridge and Windward City locations offer license and identification card renewals.
Nola Miyasaki, head of the Honolulu Department of Customer Services, spoke to The Conversation about what people should do before Aug. 6.
Miyasaki said about 175,000 driver's licenses, learner's permits and state IDs are expired or will become expired this year—thus requiring an in-person renewal. She said she inherited not only a backlog but also a reduced capacity for operations.
But she said she's hopeful the backlog will be cleared by the end of the year.
If your license is set to expire you may want to get yourself to a license renewal location. Those with licenses that expired between March 16, 2020, and June 8, 2021, have until Aug. 6 to renew.
The Kapalama, Kapolei, Koolau, Wahiawa, and Waianae licensing centers, and the Commerical Driver Licensing Office are also offering stand-by service on a limited basis to people who don't have an appointment, according to the department.
This story aired on The Conversation on June 8, 2021.
