Should I Take This Personally...

[jmra]

I renewed my CHL license on-line on November 11, 2013. I mailed my paperwork-the item that you are supposed to print out and mail in-the following day. As of today, May 2, 2014 I still have not received, or heard, ANYTHING from DPS. I went & checked on-line just now and see that there is a large red "X" with the following "Proof of Special Condition : Not received, notice sent to applicant" as an indication that the renewal is not being processed

Why did you wait 6 months to check on the status?

Must I sent a copy of my DD214 with renewals? I would think they would have that on file from the application process but if they are as incompetent as I suspect they are maybe I should have just sent it this time, or renewed without the preference. Either way, anybody have any ideas how I can get this ball moving since they WILL NOT respond to me on-line, or by phone? Do I need to call my state rep again?

Incompetent just because YOU failed to send in the required documents or check on the status? How hard would have been to just send in another copy "just in case"?

[jbarn]

Secretive because I don't want to someday be harrased by them. If I tell you that I mailed you something knowing that I did not mail it I would call that a lie. If Obama says you can keep your own doctor, etc. Anyone can make a mistake but when someone specifically tells you that they have taken a specific action and they have not done it that's a lie. I have it in writing via email where they have specifically said that a "permit" was sent knowing that it wasn't. And that's after they cashed my check. These people are supposed to work for us, the agency charges a fee for the permitting they do, then they don't send the permit after saying they have. In the meantime you spend a lot of time on hold and waiting for email responses which don't show up in the "48 business hour" response time that they claim they will meet. As I said, I don't know their structure and I don't know if each branch is distinct with it's own employees. I have dealt with DPS for over 30 years and they have gotten progressively worse. I remember being able to call and "yes sir, we will have that right away". Not anymore. My check and paper work was sent in Jan 2014 ( and cashed) to replace a permit that expired Mar 31,2014 and this is May 3,2014 and nada. Very aggravating. Their superior says that one can verify on the internet the status of the permit (true) but I need paper in hand. Kind of like not carrying your CHL even though DPS can check on the internet that you are current but you need that paper. No resolution yet for me. Glad your dealings are better.

How do you know it wasn't sent?

And again, how is all of that relevant or helpful in this thread? And I seriously mean no offense. DPS can be very frustrating, but I don't think they sinle me out or pick on me or intentionally mess with people.

[Right2Carry]

The renewal clearly states that they will try to use current fingerprints and DD214 if submitted during previous renewals. If they can't for some reason it also states you will have to provide both before the renewal is granted. I didn't have any issues at all but then again I had my DD214 scanned into the database when I applied for my veteran status on my drivers liscense.

You take a chance when you elect to not send in the required documents based on the assumption they have it filed. I took the gamble and won but I knew I might have to provide the documentation if they didn't have it stored. I started at the 6 month point and just kept up with it.

I think you are wrong to blame DPS. It is your responsibility to check on your own application especially once you have hit the 90 day mark. Good luck.

[rotor]

Secretive because I don't want to someday be harrased by them. If I tell you that I mailed you something knowing that I did not mail it I would call that a lie. If Obama says you can keep your own doctor, etc. Anyone can make a mistake but when someone specifically tells you that they have taken a specific action and they have not done it that's a lie. I have it in writing via email where they have specifically said that a "permit" was sent knowing that it wasn't. And that's after they cashed my check. These people are supposed to work for us, the agency charges a fee for the permitting they do, then they don't send the permit after saying they have. In the meantime you spend a lot of time on hold and waiting for email responses which don't show up in the "48 business hour" response time that they claim they will meet. As I said, I don't know their structure and I don't know if each branch is distinct with it's own employees. I have dealt with DPS for over 30 years and they have gotten progressively worse. I remember being able to call and "yes sir, we will have that right away". Not anymore. My check and paper work was sent in Jan 2014 ( and cashed) to replace a permit that expired Mar 31,2014 and this is May 3,2014 and nada. Very aggravating. Their superior says that one can verify on the internet the status of the permit (true) but I need paper in hand. Kind of like not carrying your CHL even though DPS can check on the internet that you are current but you need that paper. No resolution yet for me. Glad your dealings are better.

How do you know it wasn't sent?

And again, how is all of that relevant or helpful in this thread? And I seriously mean no offense. DPS can be very frustrating, but I don't think they sinle me out or pick on me or intentionally mess with people.

I know it wasn't sent because my senator got me the phone number of the head of the agency ( the superior I talked about) who said it wasn't sent inspite of all the employees that said it was sent. The only response was that one could get internet verification of the permit but they would not send paper and the law says I have to have paper posted in my office. Catch 22. The relevance of this whole thing is that just because DPS says something is done doesn't mean it is. Technically my business has a permit but technically I am in violation for not having the permit posted in my office. Look, all I am is an honest business person, pay my license fees every year or two depending on the law, expect the agency whether feds or state to do their job, cash my check, send me the paper, not a big deal as essentially it's just a tax. Some state or federal agency comes into my office and the permits are not on the wall and I am in trouble. I deal with 20 other businesses and I have to send them xerox copies of my permit to be legal. Now I guess I have to tell them to check my status on the internet as I can't send them a copy. Have been in busines for 34 years and have never had these problems. Consider yourself lucky for not having these problems with DPS in your business dealings. The entire relevance is dealing with agency that gives an honest and truthful response and if they don't know the answer, not to make something up but just say that they don't know and they will find out and get back to me. Not too much to expect from people that I pay to work for me. You do understand that they work for us and not the reverse.

[baron]

Whenever I have to deal with them, I remind myself that at least they haven't subjected me to a literal cavity search. Yet.

[jmra]

I've dealt with them on several occasions:
1. My initial app
2. My wife's initial app
3. Change of address for both myself and my wife
4. Wife's renewal
5. My renewal

Each of these occasions has been a positive experience. The only times I've needed to speak to them was to satisfy my own curiosity. Of course this was all pre September.

[Kawabuggy]

Okay, I get where some of you are coming from. Apparently it is my fault that I did not re-send a document that was provided initially qualifying me for veteran status.

Can I at least state my opinion that if I submitted a required document previously-in order to qualify for said status-then they should have maintained a copy of that form ON THEIR FILES, or at least have something in THEIR RECORDS which indicated I met the requirement previously? Is that too much to ask? Do people qualify for veteran preference upon application, and then lose that status at some point in the future? I don't know.

Also, I'm not CERTAIN that the copy of the DD214 is what is holding up my renewal. Again, the red X does not specifically state WHY they are holding up the process. Would it not be SMARTER for them to specifically call out WHY the renewal is being upheld when a person checks the status on-line? Is it smart to uphold a renewal and not tell the applicant WHY it is not being processed other than some vague answer? When you see that your renewal is upheld, and there is no SPECIFIC REASON AS TO WHY what options does that leave one with? Call, e-mail? Will they reply within "48 hours" if I e-mail them?

I get from several replies that DPS is the best, most awesome organization that you could ever deal with. NOT telling me specifically WHY they have held up my renewal IS bull. So what do I have to do now... Call them and be on interminable hold until I can finally reach someone to have them confirm that I need to re-send a document that they were provided upon initial application, and they approved my initial application while they had said document in their hands. Awesome. Duplication of effort. Great utilization of my time, effort, & tax dollars.

I'll play the game because I have to. I simply started this post to vent my frustration that something that could have been handled quite easily by a competent staff-well, you already know.

Having a CHL is a privilege. Regardless, I should still have the expectation that our tax dollars are being utilized in a controlled, business-like, fashion.

God Save The Queen-All Hail The DPS!!!!!

[TomV]

Assume they don't have anything saved from the initial application and send in everything. DD214, fingerprints, all of it. Do this before you call anyone.

Good luck

[RogueUSMC]

When I applied for my license, I claimed the veterans special condition. I sent in all the paperwork they asked for. Once it all updated, it said the DD214 that I sent (the one the Marine Corps gave me twenty years ago) was invalid. I called them and they said that it was because I sent them the wrong page. One page has a block of info that contains the annotation that the discharge was honorable, one page doesn't. The copy I was given when I left the service didn't say honorable. The nice guy at DPS says, "if ya got that little certificate on your wall, fax me a copy of it." I did and that was taken care of. I have since gotten other copies of my discharge papers from Kansas City (it only took about two weeks and was pretty painless.)

My congressman AND my senator are both veterans and they got DPS hopping when I had problems later...you may try through your rep's office...

[Kawabuggy]

Thanks everyone for the feedback. I plan on calling tomorrow to confirm why they are not processing the renewal. I will keep my phone on speaker, at my work station, with a charger plugged in, until such a time that I get a human on the other end of the line.

[TexasGal]

The DPS gets pretty bogged down at times handling the thousands of applications and when they have to implement changes in the laws, they don't get more money from the state to do it. I have had things get confused and had to send some things more than once, but with timely and patient action, it gets straightened out. It wasn't always their fault. Sometimes it was mine. I have yet to have any DPS employee treat me badly. In every conversation and email, I get the impression the person is trying to get things resolved.

[VMI77]

All my experiences have been positive. In fact, I think the process has improved since I first got my CHL. Communication was much better this time around. They sent a renewal letter way in advance of expiration --with instructions. I got email responses to submissions and questions within 24 hours. They promptly corrected an error. I had to be reprinted and it still only took about 30 days to get a new license. My son got his in 17 days. Also, I'd previously submitted a change of address and got a new license in less than 2 weeks.