SYRACUSE - Renewal of driver's licenses, commercial driver's licenses, vehicle and watercraft titles and plates may not be available in Syracuse because the Bureau of Motor Vehicles branch is on the state's "closure review" list.

BMV commissioner Joel Silverman will conduct a public hearing Friday in the branch facility, 1013 N. Harrison St., at 7 p.m. to determine the office's fate. State law requires public hearings in counties where Indiana license branches may close.

"I'm in favor of keeping the Syracuse branch open," said town councilman Paul Stoelting this morning. "It seems to me we have a lot of transactions for boats and trailers, when you buy them, in addition to registering vehicles. It's important to Turkey Creek Township residents."

The branch's services are available to people who don't want to drive to Elkhart or Albion, too.

"The Syracuse branch serves Cromwell and northwestern Noble County and Ligonier and Elkhart county residents," said Syracuse town manager Jeff Noffsinger.

The Indiana BMV recently closed nine license branches and has placed Syracuse in the slow lane along with 23 other branches under review for closure. Silverman said the closures are designed to strengthen customer service and upgrade computer systems and facilities.

The BMV is looking at the number of transactions, a branch's proximity to other branches and if another office could handle additional traffic, according to BMV communications director Greg Cook.

"You don't have to visit the branch,"Cook said. "We are encouraging people to renew registrations through the mail, by telephone or on the Internet."

The state's 156 BMV offices conducted more than 9.7 million transactions last year. About 62.5 percent actually required a branch visit. Operating expenses for all branches exceeds $77 million. The offices employ 1,657 people.

According to BMV statistics (On the Net at www.in.gov/bmv) the Syracuse branch had 41,296 transactions in 2004. More than 60 percent of those transactions actually required a branch visit. Of the state's 156 branches, the Syracuse office ranks 96th. Annual operating expenses are $248,000. There are four employees there, according to Indiana Bureau of Motor Vehicles statistics.

Kosciusko County has two BMV branches, the other is in Warsaw. It had 100,251 transactions in 2004 and ranked 31st out of 156. More than 57 percent of the Warsaw branch's transactions actually required a branch visit, the others could have been done by mail, telephone or on the BMV's Internet site. Operating expenses were $746,000 in 2004 for the Warsaw branch, which has 15 employees.

Cook said lease agreements are another area the state is studying to determine whether or not a branch closes.

The state's goal is to have citizens waiting less than 15 minutes prior to an transaction.

"We're going to have 'secret inspectors,'" he said. "The people will rate a branch's efficiency and customer service."

One service that returns to BMV offices is driver license renewals. A new state law, effective Thursday, eliminates online license renewals because of security concerns.

There is a 180-day "grace period" for driver's license renewals and a six-year license renewal period will make up for the loss of online license transactions, according to Silverman. Driver licenses go to six-year renewal cycles in 2006. The license renewal cycle is shorter for ages 75 and older.

Customers should be able to renew driver's licenses through December.

The Indiana BMV estimates 3 million fewer visits to state license branches with the longer cycle. [[In-content Ad]]