Col. Kevin Shweto, executive director of the South Carolina Department of Motor Vehicles, told the House Education and Public Works Committee that rapid state population growth and limited DMV staffing have strained services and that modernization is needed to preserve identity services and public-safety operations.

Shweto said the state population grew from roughly 4 million to 5.3 million while DMV staffing and budgets have not kept pace. He described a high staff turnover—about 33 percent annually at the time of his remarks—and said many front-line DMV employees must master a wide range of statutory and administrative subjects, including titling, registration, identity and fraud prevention. "These individuals aren't ... doing 1 or 2 simple tasks—they are responsible for 444 different transactions," he said.

The DMV director warned of federal deadlines tied to the Real ID Act and urged constituents to obtain Real ID-compliant credentials. He said about 60 percent of state residents have Real ID and that passengers without Real ID or a valid passport could face access limitations for federal facilities and air travel after the federal deadlines. "If you don't have your Real ID, you're making a real mistake there because you will not get on an airplane on July," he said.

Shweto stressed the agency's aging core system (referred to as "Phoenix"), which he said is more than two decades old and requires urgent replacement and modernization. He repeated the DMV’s long-standing modernization request and told the committee an updated system would cost roughly $100 million. He warned that failed or poorly executed modernization efforts in other states demonstrate the risks of selecting vendors without sufficient experience.

Operational changes cited in the presentation include centralized issuance of secure cards beginning in September (meaning customers would receive some replacement cards by mail rather than immediate issuance at local offices), and a move toward mobile/electronic driver’s licenses in future modernization plans. Shweto also discussed program transfers and partnerships—he said the SRO program previously moved to DPS—and recommended lawmakers coordinate with the DMV on laws that affect road safety, vehicle standards and identity verification.

Committee members asked about Real ID privacy concerns and the level of data collected for Real ID; Shweto said the Real ID difference compared with a standard license is the requirement of one additional piece of mail for proof of identity and that broader privacy concerns involve device and third-party data flows outside DMV control. He also urged legislators to press for modernization funding, citing service impacts and the DMV’s role in identity verification for law enforcement and benefits programs.