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Re: Problems with DPS receiving fingerprints
Posted: Wed Aug 17, 2011 10:37 pm
by strider67
johncanfield wrote:Wife and I got fingerprinted last Thursday. Hers were rejected - she received an email from L1 that DPS didn't like them. This was no suprise as 5 or 6 were rejected by the scanner. She goes again tomorrow for another try. We are both listed in the database as "waiting on fingerprints." Not sure if L1 rejected the prints before they got to DPS, or if DPS really did receive the prints and they kicked them back. Sigh..
Someone please correct me if I am wrong, but I believe that is the fault of the person responsible for doing your prints. When my instructor did mine, he did each finger multiple times until he was satisfied, and then went back and redid two more. He was very articulate.
Re: Problems with DPS receiving fingerprints
Posted: Thu Aug 18, 2011 7:25 am
by johncanfield
Actually the guy was quite good and spent quite a bit of time with her. To my amazement, her fingers look like they are sanded - if you look at her prints closely, they are smooth with few ridges.

Re: Problems with DPS receiving fingerprints
Posted: Thu Aug 18, 2011 8:04 am
by strider67
Hmmmm...that was the only theory I had. If you find out the problem, please pass along so I can learn something new. Good luck!
Re: Problems with DPS receiving fingerprints
Posted: Thu Aug 18, 2011 8:28 am
by Pawpaw
johncanfield wrote:Actually the guy was quite good and spent quite a bit of time with her. To my amazement, her fingers look like they are sanded - if you look at her prints closely, they are smooth with few ridges.

Someone else on the forum had that same problem a few months ago. I think the solution was to drink plenty of water and use lots of hand lotion for a couple of days before going in for prints.
Re: Problems with DPS receiving fingerprints
Posted: Thu Aug 18, 2011 12:07 pm
by johncanfield
She bought some special hand lotion and I have been doing the dishes for a week (we don't have an automatic washer), but she flunked again this morning. She said one complete hand failed this time

and it was a different L1 guy running the scanner.
Re: Problems with DPS receiving fingerprints
Posted: Thu Aug 18, 2011 2:15 pm
by boomstick
I have been waiting 6 weeks for DPS IT to retrieve my fingerprints manually from "the system" for a new CHL Instructors Certification application. Every time I call they push it off for another week and tell me to call them back.

Re: Problems with DPS receiving fingerprints
Posted: Thu Aug 18, 2011 2:16 pm
by Cool Arrow
I think its time to call your Representative.
Re: Problems with DPS receiving fingerprints
Posted: Thu Aug 18, 2011 3:21 pm
by Carl in Katy
Cool Arrow wrote:I think its time to call your Representative.
Contacted mine.... only response I received was the sounds of crickets. Sucks to be us, I guess. $142.00 to be ignored.. what a deal!
Re: Problems with DPS receiving fingerprints
Posted: Thu Aug 18, 2011 6:14 pm
by Zrexxer
I've been going through the same issue recently, although mine turned around a little quicker.
Got printed at L1 on 8/10 and stopped at the post office 10 minutes later and mailed everything. DPS had my status on the website by Friday p.m., 8/12, but it said "Fingerprints not received."
I agonized about what had gone wrong all weekend and called them Monday morning at 8:15 am. I had to sit on hold for 25 minutes. Really? They'd gotten a 25 minute backlog by 8:15?? When I finally reached someone, he told me I'd have to call back with L1's TCN number, which I didn't have handy when I called, and they'd have to send a request to their IT department to pull the prints by the TCN number.
After finally having to call L1 to track down the TCN, I tried to call them back - again and again. Finally had to give up when the last time I called the recording said that "Due to exceptionally high call volume, they had stopped taking calls altogether."
So I emailed them through the contact form on the CHL Customer Relations web page, told them that the rep had asked for my TCN number, and here it was. Within two hours, I got a reply back via email saying I needed to provide them with my name, DL, and TCN number. what the heck? Swallowed my bile and emailed all the same crap that I'd sent before, to no response.
Finally, a couple days later, my status updated to "Fingerprints: Complete."'
My buddy who mailed his at the same time is an Air Force vet, sent in his DD-214, which they rejected because it was "not the right form." Well, it WAS the right form, but we had to fax it back in with the discharge conditions circled in magic marker so they could find it. Also his status says his photo holder is "under review." What's there to review? We filled them out side-by-side and they're both correct and complete.
So far... I'm underwhelmed. I'm just in a holding pattern now waiting for everything to filter through the bureaucracy. But you'd think if they were going to give some company a sole-source, golden egg contract for fingerprints, they could at least get their stuff straight.
Re: Problems with DPS receiving fingerprints
Posted: Thu Aug 18, 2011 6:20 pm
by Ameer
Carl in Katy wrote:Cool Arrow wrote:I think its time to call your Representative.
Contacted mine.... only response I received was the sounds of crickets. Sucks to be us, I guess. $142.00 to be ignored.. what a deal!
Welcome to the world of second-class CHLs who are college students, professors and staff.
The up side is an easy decision how to vote.

Re: Problems with DPS receiving fingerprints
Posted: Thu Aug 18, 2011 10:22 pm
by Carl in Katy
"This Texas.gov service is temporarily down for maintenance.
We apologize for the inconvenience. Please check back soon.
Texas.gov está temporalmente fuera de servicio por mantenimiento.
Ofrecemos disculpas por el inconveniente.
Por favor inténtelo de nuevo más tarde."
WOW, they must have unplugged the cord before going home tonight. Well, at least it LOOKS like they are doing something. First rule of being a gov't employee: LOOK BUSY.
Re: Problems with DPS receiving fingerprints
Posted: Fri Aug 19, 2011 7:00 am
by boomstick
Re: Problems with DPS receiving fingerprints
Posted: Fri Aug 19, 2011 9:21 am
by johncanfield
Just got off the phone with the TX CHL guy and gave him my TCN number (only about a 15 minute wait for a human.) Same story as others have mentioned - he will send a request to their IT shop to pull the prints. He mentioned they expect to have the IT issue resolved in three weeks

.
I retired from AT&T's corporate IT department and I can tell you heads would have rolled over a long running and unresolved issue like this, but then we weren't a government entity. I suppose the penalty for poor and/or incompetent performance in government is...
nothing.
I asked the guy about my wife failing the second scan and he said they will do a 2nd failure search - I suppose using her name/SSN/birth date. So she is finished with fingerprinting.
Re: Problems with DPS receiving fingerprints
Posted: Fri Aug 19, 2011 9:25 am
by Cool Arrow
Well at least the no more finger printing was some good news. I hope they get you fixed up soon.
Re: Problems with DPS receiving fingerprints
Posted: Fri Aug 19, 2011 9:32 am
by boomstick
Just so you know, the DPS rep has sent three requests to "IT" in the past three weeks to retrieve my prints... This is after they had me fax my FAST receipt with the TCN # printed on it to them on July 27th.
I aint holdin my breath on this speeding up the process...
Saul