Actually, it will be at least 4 or 5 years before those applicants need to renew. And, with the current situation in Austin, I sincerly doubt they are looking that far ahead. There was another "surge" in applications in 2001 after 9/11. I was not aware of any major impact on processing times when those came up for renewal - just the normal "you get it when you get it" ...
Mine expires in mid-November. Or was scheduled to. I got paperwork turned around pronto on both my end and they did the same (not necessarily because I'm an instructor either). Right at 7 weeks and I had new license in hand. With what I'd been hearing about the dealys, I jumped on it early!