MVTA Member News- July 2024

Welcome to the MVTA Member News!

July 2024

Hello MVTA Members,  

I believe this introduction is long overdue, and many have said you wanted to hear from me directly.  My name is Anthony Serafino and I am your current Chairman.  I have been working in the tag and title industry for about seven years.  In that time, I have worked as a counter agent, MVA runner, dealer liaison, office manager, HR rep, bookkeeper, project foreman, repairman, IT consultant, marketing director, and parking lot attendant.  I can honestly say, just like many of you who are running your own small business, you must be able to wear a lot of different hats.   

My latest hat as Chairman has been an interesting challenge for the first six months.  I think we can all agree that the prior Chairperson, Beth, left a big “hat” to fill and it has been a challenge making it fit.  I want every member to know that I am working hard, making sure that the needs and challenges facing us are being addressed.  It has been an experience for this new board as we learn to navigate the relationships forged by the prior board members, to ensure we are achieving the MVTA’s goals.   

As your new board comes onto our own, we hope to make more of a direct impact on how you conduct business.    But we can’t do it alone.  We will need your support, your ideas, your feedback, and sometimes your time to make change happen.  The MVTA has ambitious goals and through your support we hope to achieve them. 

Anthony Serafino
Chairman 

PRESSING NEWS:

💥 CALL TO ACTION – VOLUNTEERS NEEDED:  💥 

• • Nominating Committee – Applications for 2025 board positions will open soon! 
  • Annual Meeting Committee – set up, cleanup, marketing calls, etc.  Regular planning meetings begin in August! 
  • Education Committee – If you have served previously, you are welcome to continue!  If you are newly interested, please reach out to Wendy at info@mvta.org. 
  • MVTA Contact Sheet – We are looking for help keeping this updated.  Would everyone please let Wendy know when you find a number or email that doesn’t work?  Thank you!! 

WELCOME NEW MEMBERS!

1. Alliado, Inc.
2. Capital Tag and Title

REPORT BY WENDY FROM THE AAMVA REGION 2 CONFERENCE:

In late June, I attended the AAMVA Conference in New Orleans, LA.   There were 484 registered attendees, a record for any of the prior regional conferences.  There are currently 40 states enrolled in the state-to-state (S2S) verification system, with 8 more expected to join by the end of 2024.   AAMVA currently has 210 employees who seem to work cohesively to accomplish their missions! 

Some key changes reported: 

The Identity Management group, which is a subset of driver licensing, has become a permanent AAMVA Committee.  Members of this committee are tasked with providing recommendations, advice and subject matter expertise for expanding AAMVA’s role in supporting jurisdictions’ credential and identity management responsibilities. 

Improved Customer Interaction has become a central focal point of AAMVA, per the request of jurisdictions across the nation.  There are ongoing discussions focused on managing the customer experience and creating best practices.  Plans to build out this discipline include creating a new committee to guide them in this endeavor.  As independent title agents, we already know that serving the public is one of many skills in which we excel, and offering superior customer service is something we must diligently continue.  While I don’t ever foresee any DMV exceeding our abilities in this realm, it is a good time to refresh your employees to provide the very best customer service to your clients.  Take time to create an atmosphere where your team can thrive while recognizing and rewarding them along the way!  For more on this topic, see AAMVAcast Episode 211 – Innovative Customer Service.  

AAMVA continues to solidify relationships across borders and across the globe, and information gleaned from these relationships helps MVTA recognize where the entire industry is heading.  Leaders are focused on strong core operations, CDL test modernization, publishing new best practices, and meeting federal mandates.  AAMVA is also leading the way in mDL, testifying before Congress and their CEO recently interviewed for a Forbes article.  As mentioned, the emerging areas of identity management and the digital trust service are also top of mind.  NMVTIS continues to evolve to an “all real time” solution, and old technology across all DMV’s are being retired.  Deadlines for sunsetting these programs have been set for January 2025, July 2026 and later in 2028.   

Virginia was highlighted as a case study on website innovation, another topic we must continue to monitor.  Online transactions doubled during Covid, but so did online fraud across jurisdictions which many scrambled to contain.  This led to performance audits and studies resulting in DMV’s adding or modifying transactions that can be securely completed online.  Websites and kiosks were redesigned using a “plain language model” for easier understanding (Maryland also), and transaction steps were narrowed resulting in more public engagement at the kiosk or on their websites (yikes!).  Driving the public to open their own online account continues to be a consistent theme nationally, along with chat services and integrated apps. 

Some jurisdictions have begun to use automated technology to reduce the backlog of renewal applications.  RPA (Robotic Process Automation) eliminated employee overtime, reduced turnaround time, made for faster processing times and reduced human error.  Some jurisdictions, Maryland included, have embraced the concept of “decentralizing of work to underutilized branch offices”.  Texas recently won an AAMVA award using automated email replies using Google analytics.  For more on this topic, see podcast Episode 215 – Customer Relations Automation. 

A sampling of the classes I attended at this session were: 

• • Jurisdiction Highlights and Innovations 
  • MV Authorities’ Rights and Responsibilities with First Amendment Audits, CDL Mandates, and Real IDs 
  • Everything You Ever Wanted to Know About Electric Vehicles and More 
  • Online Transaction Fraud 
  • Electronic Vehicle Titling and Vehicle Records Management – Case Studies and Roadmap to the Future 
  • Roadblocks and Revolutions:  Navigating Unexpected DMV Customer Service Turbulence 
  • NMVTIS Beyond Titling 
  • Revving up Revenue 

Make sure to check out the AAMVA resources on our member portal.  You will find industry articles, best practices and links to MOVE Magazine and the AAMVA podcast series. 

Below are a few pictures from New Orleans.   It was my honor to represent MVTA at this conference!  😊  

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

MVTA SUPPORTS THE CHESAPEAKE BAY FOUNDATION:  

The following article was submitted by Beth Caro, Immediate Past Chair:   

Chesapeake Bay Trust Partnering with Maryland Coastal Bays Program
UNVEILING OF THE NEW BAYS PLATE
July 23, 2024 at Assateague Island, Maryland 

On July 23rd our MVTA Past Chairman, Beth Caro and longstanding MVTA Member, Jody Palmisano of West Ocean City Tag and Title, had the exciting opportunity to speak at the unveiling of the new “Bays” License Plate. This plate is a staple on our roadways as we all live and interact with the Chesapeake Bay daily. This new redesign is merely a change to verbiage now to include the Maryland Coastal Bays Program. 

  

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

This event was very exciting and attended well by supporters far in wide to include; State Senator Mary Beth Carozza, R-38, along with MDOT MVA Administrator, Christine Nizer, Chesapeake Bay Trust President, Jana Davis, and Maryland Coastal Bays Executive Director, Kevin Smith. 

This event is very special to all who are concerned with our waterways and watersheds for the protection of the inhabitants which Beth shared regarding our industry in part of her speech, “The efforts and passion of the automotive industry in our state helps to drive the success of this initiative. Each license plate that an automotive dealership or a tag & title agency helps a customer to put on their car means native trees are planted in our communities and school children can explore nature and have the opportunity to study the environment and how to protect it.” 

The vendors who attended were very interesting to visit with and to learn more about the Bay and the improvements being made through this partnership. 

 Now it’s time for a “Call to Action” MVTA Members!   Don’t forget to… 

• • Participate in the Bay Tag contest 
  • Remember to recommend Bay Tags on trailers 
  • Keep inventory stocked and hand over to the customer the post card to mention the Bay perks! 
  • Sign up for the Tag Agents for the Bay Program 

Now you too can have ways to help customers proudly display our new partnership and be a supporter of the Chesapeake Bay waterways in your tag agency. 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

UPCOMING EDUCATIONAL OPPORTUNITIES:

E-Signatures Webinar – On July 24th, Marc Aronson of the Pennsylvania Association of Notaries gave a presentation showcasing the history and development of E-signatures and the laws that govern notarial acts.  He reviewed court case decisions and the authentication and auditing of them.  The presentation was well attended, and we are looking forward to scheduling Marc for a follow up webinar on online/remote notarization.  The video is being edited and will be uploaded to our member portal along with the presentation slide deck. Stay tuned! 

Q&A with the MVTA Board of Directors – Tuesday, August 13th from 7:00 to 8:00 pm.  Come join our quarterly virtual hangout for a Q&A Roundtable with the Board of Directors!  Bring your drinks/snacks, questions, input, and ideas to make the MVTA better!  There is often a “show and tell” when fur babies pop in!  Join us at this MS Teams link.

MVA Fraud Prevention Training – Tuesday, SEPTEMBER 18th from 9:00 – 11:00 am, in person at MVA Glen Burnie, Building A, Room 5 

Since the July class was cancelled, don’t miss this opportunity to participate.  There is always a new tidbit at each training session and an opportunity to interact with the Investigations, Auditing, and the Business Licensing and Compliance departments.  

Dealertrack Seminars – Remember to attend the monthly Dealertrack training and Q&A!

Every 2nd Tuesday & Thursday of the month Dealertrack will host a discussion with MD online processing and DMV experts to bring you the latest updates, developments, innovations, common challenges, and more to help you process more efficiently for quick deal turn-around times. Use this link to register for a session and details on how to join will be sent to you: https://attendee.gotowebinar.com/rt/3289234536169477133 

Future MVTA Training Events – We have some innovative ideas in the works, but we also value YOUR ideas and input!  Please send any specific requests you have for tag and title training topics to info@mvta.org.  As always, self-paced training is available in recorded videos on our member portal.

CONTACT UPDATES:

As highlighted in each newsletter, here are some useful contacts to keep at your fingertips.

• The Branch Contact List has been updated!  See the full list of contacts here and remember to leave a note if a phone number or email is incorrect.
• Reminder: Send help requests to: helpdesk@mvta.org – we are happy to assist!
• Also, In Case You Missed It (ICYMI), please update your contact information in the MVA portal, specifically your email and phone number.  Many are incorrect.

PLATE OF THE MONTH:

If you have a fun photo of a Maryland license plate to share in our Plate of the Month section, please email it to info@mvta.org. 

Sincerely,

Lisa Charaf, Secretary
Wendy May, Executive Director

and

The MVTA Board of Directors