Say 'cheese,' but not too much

Red Willow County Treasurer Marleen Garcia takes a last look at the driver's license picture equipment in her office. Beginning July 27, pictures for licenses and permits will be taken downstairs at the driver's license examination office, using new facial recognition software. (Lorri Sughroue/McCook Daily Gazette)

Say cheese -- but don't smile too much.

Beginning July 17, the state is installing in all counties new cameras with facial recognition technology, that will be used to take pictures for driver's licenses, permits and state IDs.

Marleen Garcia, Red Willow County Treasurer, said normal smiles will be accepted but excessive facial expressions will trigger the camera to reject the picture.

Anything that can obscure facial features will be prohibited, she said, such as dark glasses, hats, or hair hanging in the face. No head gear will be allowed except for medical or religious reasons.

Too much facial contortion can keep the face recognition equipment from matching a face with the 1.5 million other faces in the state's data base, according to Beverly Neth, director of the Nebraska Department of Motor Vehicles.

The new cameras are part of the state's efforts to comply with the Homeland Security Act.

Pictures for licenses will be taken at the driver's license examiners office on the ground floor at the Red Willow County Courthouse, Garcia said. Applicants will then go to the Red Willow County Treasurer's office to pay fees and to receive a temporary license for 30 days, until new licenses are issued at a plant near Atlanta. These will be mailed to applicants, usually within five to seven days.

The temporary licenses will be on heavy cardboard stock and will be allowed for ID purposes when flying, Garcia said

Fees have been increased by $2.50 per document issued, with new or renewed regular five-year licenses increased to $26.50 each,

Another change is that two forms of identification will be required for new or renewed licenses or state ID cards, Garcia added. Forms of ID accepted can be a utility bill, car registration or insurance card, she said, as long as the applicant's name and address are listed.

No licenses or permits will be issued from July 20 to July 24 at the Red Willow County Treasurer's office, while the new equipment is being programmed in counties across the state, beginning in the eastern region.

But if someone needs to change information on a license in an emergency situation, they can call her office at 345-6515 to find out what county will be available, Garcia added.

The removal of the camera equipment and blue backdrop used to take license pictures at the Red Willow County Treasurer's office is a welcome relief for Garcia, who said she's looking forward to the extra counter space.

That's because in May, the treasurer's office took over from the county clerk's office issuing titles for motor vehicles, boats and trailers.

The change-over is the result of LB 49, signed into law this year, that makes Nebraska country treasurer's offices a one-stop shop for issuing the documents.

This is being done in part to comply with a federal mandate to use the National Motor Vehicle Titling Information System by 2010.

"We're going through a big learning curve with the titles and we hope the public is patient with us," Garcia said, but she expects to process people faster with the new space.