TALLAHASSEE, Fla. \u2013 Two Florida lawmakers say the agency overseeing the state\u2019s driver\u2019s licenses, license plates, and the Florida Highway Patrol is a mess, and something needs to change.<\/p>\n
Right now, the FHP is under the Office of Commercial Vehicle Enforcement, which is within the Florida Department of Highway Safety and Motor Vehicles.<\/p>\n
[RELATED: How to find your Florida House, Senate representatives<\/a>]<\/p>\n \u201cRespectfully, I don\u2019t know why FHP was ever put under them to begin with,\u201d State Rep. Dan Daley, D-Coral Springs, told News 6 Thursday.<\/p>\n Daley has filed HB 1199<\/a>, and State Sen. Tina Polsky, D-Boca Raton, has filed SB 1450<\/a>. The final bill that\u2019s approved would put the FHP under the oversight of the Florida Department of Law Enforcement. <\/p>\n [WATCH: Florida Highway Patrol advocates push for funding amid staffing crisis]<\/p>\n Daley and Polsky say FLHSMV needs better accountability. The agency runs only two driver\u2019s license offices in the state: the one in Miami-Dade County and the one in Broward County. But the offices are plagued by long wait lines and other issues, like appointment scalping.<\/p>\n \u201cSenior citizens were passing out and needing medical service because they\u2019re standing out in the heat for hours waiting for these services,\u201d Daley said.<\/p>\n Daley says FLHSMV used to run all of the county driver\u2019s license offices, but tax collectors now run the offices in every other county. Miami-Dade and Broward counties are in the process of transitioning to the same format.<\/p>\n \u201cThey\u2019ve had decreasing responsibilities and can\u2019t do the job,\u201d Daley said.<\/p>\n The bill would also require the FLHSMV executive director to be confirmed by the Florida Senate.<\/p>\n \u201cWith all due respect to the current director, maybe things would be different if they had to answer to the Florida Senate,\u201d Daley said.<\/p>\n [WATCH: What\u2019s Florida Highway Patrol doing at the Mexico border?]<\/p>\n Daley said moving FHP to FDLE would put FHP under a law enforcement agency better equipped to oversee training and accountability.<\/p>\n \u201cFlorida\u2019s law enforcement structure should be organized around public safety and services, not outdated bureaucracy,\u201d Polsky said in a news release. \u201cBy moving the Highway Patrol and Commercial Vehicle Enforcement to FDLE, we are strengthening coordination, improving accountability, and ensuring critical public safety and licensing functions are led by experienced law enforcement professionals.\u201d<\/p>\n