Government

Friday – 21 May 2010 - 1430 hours
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Georgia drivers should mark their calendars and include a reminder with their Fourth of July party invites…it’s time to buckle up in pickup trucks. By then, the new state pickup truck safety belt law will be in effect in Georgia. The new law says if you’re in a truck, buckle up. Although officers statewide will be participating in the regular May enforcement campaign of Click It or Ticket (CIOT) on Memorial Day weekend, they’ll be looking ahead to the next holiday weekend, July 4^th, when they’ll be concentrating on writing tickets for all unbelted pickup truck drivers and passengers.

Why now? The facts are clear. In fatalities of passenger vehicle occupants within the rural areas of Georgia, nearly half involve light pickup trucks. Among these fatalities, 75-percent are unrestrained. Traffic crashes, injuries and fatalities cost Georgia more than $7.8 billion and more than 1,500 crash deaths every year. Approximately 100 of these lives could be saved without spending a dime if pickup truck occupants simply buckled up at the same rate as those in passenger vehicles. The new pickup truck law will help increase safety belt usage and help save lives in Georgia.

What about farmers? Under the new provisions of the law, there is zero impact to any agricultural roadway user. The new pickup truck belt law was written so that it included an exemption for every conceivable agricultural use in the state.

Does this law unfairly target rural communities? In a word…no. Buckling up in your pickup truck is not an issue of urban-versus-rural or agriculture-versus-industry. It’s simply an issue of saving lives of some of our most productive citizens.

The rural road crash death rate in Georgia is twice that of urban areas. This is due primarily to the fact that pickup truck occupants use their seatbelts nearly 15-percent less than their peers riding in passenger vehicles.

When worn correctly, seatbelts have proven to reduce the risk of fatal injury to front-seat light truck occupants by 60-percent and as much as 80-percent in the event of a rollover crash. Simply buckling your seatbelt can reduce medical and legal expenses, lost wages, lost productivity, high insurance rates and other burdensome costs that all citizens are forced to share because of rollovers and vehicle crashes. While these monetary costs are staggering, the biggest beneficiaries are the families and loved ones of pickup truck occupants who will not be killed or severely injured in a crash because they are wearing their safety belts.

Just remember that with this new law, there are no more warnings and no more excuses. No matter what you drive or where you drive, if you don’t want to click it, expect a ticket.

For more information on Georgia’s new Georgia’s new pickup truck safety belt law, visit www.gahighwaysafety.org.

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In observance of the Labor Day Holiday, Department of Driver Services (DDS) Customer Service Centers (CSCs) statewide will be closed on Saturday, September 5th and Monday, September 7th. CSCs will reopen to serve you on Tuesday, September 8th.

DDS Administrative Headquarters in Conyers, including the customer contact call center, will be closed on Monday, September 7th and will reopen on Tuesday, September 8th.

Please remember that the Tuesday after a holiday closing is a particularly busy day and plan ahead.

Many DDS services, including initiating a change of address or requesting a replacement license, can be done online via www.dds.ga.gov.

2009 National Night Out August 4^thRoswell City Hall Parking Lot6:00-9:00 PMRoswell Police-Community Partnership

The Roswell police Department, along with many other city departments and Roswell businesses will be participating in the National Night Out Against Crime again this year.

Department of Driver Services (DDS) Customer Service Centers Launch New Hours

Provides Over 100 Additional Service Hours for Customers per Week!

Beginning Tuesday, June 2nd, Department of Driver Services’ (DDS) Customer Service Centers (CSCs) will be changing hours of operation in an effort to provide service at more convenient hours for customers. Centers will open earlier to better distribute customer demand in the morning hours. The new hours of service provide more service opportunities for customers before work or school – over 100 additional hours for service each week.

“After a thorough review of average customer wait times and transactions completed each day at these locations, I believe alternate hours will enable DDS license examiners to serve a greater number of customers in a much more efficient manner,” said DDS Commissioner Gregory C. Dozier.

CSCs will follow one of five operating schedules with each location being closed every Monday. The hours are listed below.

New Center Hours

15 locations will serve customers Tuesday through Friday from 7:30 am until 6:30 pm and Saturday 7:30 am until 12:00 pm. Each center will be closed every Monday. Athens, Atlanta, Conyers, Decatur, Forest Park, Gainesville, Lawrenceville, Lithonia, Locust Grove, Marietta, Norcross, North Cobb, Sandy Springs, Savannah, Union City

22 locations will serve customers Tuesday through Friday from 8:00 am until 6:00 pm. Each center will be closed every Saturday through Monday. Americus, Blairsville, Blue Ridge, Calhoun, Cedartown, Cordele, Douglas, Elberton, Griffin , Helena, Kingsland, LaGrange, Perry, Reidsville, Rincon, Rock Spring, Swainsboro, Thomaston, Thomasville, Thomson, Toccoa, Waycross

5 locations will serve customers Tuesday through Friday from 8:00 am until 6:00 pm and Saturday 7:30 am until 12:00 pm. Each center will be closed every Monday. Cartersville, Dublin, Hinesville, Newnan, Rome

18 locations will serve customers Tuesday through Friday from 8:00 am until 6:00 pm and Saturday from 8:00 am until Noon. Each center will be closed every Monday. Albany, Augusta, Brunswick, Canton, Carrollton, Columbus, Covington, Cumming, Dalton, Evans, Fayetteville, Jackson, Macon, Milledgeville, Statesboro, Tifton, Valdosta, Warner Robins.

Three part-time centers will begin new hours including: Colquitt, Thursday through Friday 8:00 am until 6:00 pm; Cuthbert, Thursday through Friday 8:00 am until 6:00 pm; Sandersville, Thursday through Friday 8:00 am until 6:00 pm

The Centers will continue to provide the same licensing and testing services and employ the same number of driver examiners. All Centers continue to accept cash, check, debit and credit cards as payment options. For additional information, please call (toll free) 1-(866) 754-3687 (outside the Metro Atlanta Area) or (678) 413-8400 if dialing directly.

DDS reminds customers that many transactions may be initiated online via www.dds.ga.gov. Services that may be obtained online include initiating a change of address or replacing a lost license.

Susan Sports
Public Information Officer
Department of Driver Services
(678) 413-8657 office

The Department of Driver Services (DDS) announced today that the Georgia Motorcycle Safety Program (GMSP) is incorporating scooters into the Basic and Experienced rider education courses.

Scooters have become a serious and sensible transportation option. Many perceive them to be safer and easier to handle than a motorcycle. In reality, any two-wheel vehicle takes a different skill set to maneuver our streets.

With that in mind, the GMSP welcomes scooter owners to participate in the license waiver Basic and Experienced rider education courses. Scooter owners can now enroll their machine in a rider education program, and if successful, earn a license waiver.

• Students with scooters must show proof that they own the machine and that it is registered and insured.

• If a student wishes to ride to the training site they must have a Class MP permit (remember permit holders can’t ride after dark and some classes are held at night). Students can transport the scooter to the training location in a truck or on a trailer.

• Scooter students must call the GMSP after registering and inform staff of their intention to use a scooter.

The GMSP team has worked hard to offer new programs and courses to help to promote motorcycle safety across the state. And now, we’d like to invite scooter riders along for the ride.

All Department of Driver Services (DDS) drivers licensing Customer Service Centers (CSCs) will be closed on Saturday, May 23, 2009 and will reopen on Tuesday, May 26, 2009.

DDS administrative offices in Conyers, including the customer contact call center, will be closed on Monday, May 25, 2009 and will reopen on Tuesday, May 26, 2009.

DDS reminds customers that many transactions such as initiating a change of address or requesting a replacement license may be done online at www.dds.ga.gov.

Department of Driver Services (DDS) Announces Arrests for Alleged Identity Theft and Forgery in Crisp and Tift Counties

As part of a multi-agency task force, investigators from the Georgia Department of Driver Services (DDS), Georgia Bureau of Investigation (GBI) and Crisp County Sheriff’s Office recently arrested nine suspects allegedly attempting to acquire Georgia Identification Cards for undocumented aliens in the Crisp and Tift County areas.

A tip led to the investigation of the ring that was attempting to use stolen identities and false documents to obtain Georgia IDs from the DDS, Cordele, Crisp County, licensing customer service center.

It was determined through interviews that four suspects were transported from Delaware to Georgia to meet individuals that would help them obtain ID cards. Upon arrival in the Tift County area, the suspects were supplied with counterfeit employment verification letters to satisfy Georgia residency requirements. They were in possession of genuine Texas birth certificates and Social Security Cards.

Arrested were: Peggy Sue Duckworth, 60; Rita Charline Rodriguez, 31; Melisa D. Holweger, 25; Froilan Garcia-Juarez, 38; Jenner Estuardo Garcia-Garcia, 25; Erica Ablizar Perez-Villegas, 27; Hugo Juarez-Niz, 22; Parfecto Delfino, 20; Portino Perez, 39. They remain in the Crisp County and Tift County jails.

DDS Commissioner Gregory C. Dozier applauded the action of the investigators and members of the Georgia SecureID Taskforce. “DDS is committed to combating driver license fraud and identity theft. This is a perfect example of how this taskforce combats illegal immigration and identity theft and supports homeland security,” he said.

Georgia SecureID was created by Georgia Governor Sonny Perdue in 2006 to crack down on the use of fraudulent documents to obtain state identification cards and driver licenses. For more information, please visit the DDS website www.dds.ga.gov.

GEORGIA DELEGATION PARTICIPATES IN EMERGENCY EVACUATION DRILL FROM HIGH-RISE BUILDING IN ISRAEL

Georgia’s Insurance and Safety Fire Commissioner is the first US state official to evaluate the Escape Rescue System following the Mumbai terror attacks

The simulation demonstrated the system’s strategic advantage in first response
and emergency evacuation

Ramat Gan, Israel, Tuesday, December 16 – Within eight minutes, emergency rescue personnel swiftly and safely evacuated the high level delegation of businessmen and women from the State of Georgia, “stranded” on the fourteenth floor of a high-rise building in Israel, as part of a simulation of the Escape Rescue System, which took place near Tel Aviv on Sunday afternoon.

Designated by the US Department of Homeland Security as a Qualified Anti-Terrorism Technology, the multi-tiered, external evacuation platform provides unprecedented fight and flight capabilities in the event of an emergency in a high-rise building. In a full, 5-cabin configuration, the system can deliver up to 25 SWAT personnel and rescue 150 people every 8 minutes.

“The tragic events in Mumbai and the changed skyline of New York are reminders of the pride we have in our cities and of the necessity to prepare for another 9/11, a fire or a terrorist hostage-taking situation,” said John Oxendine, Insurance and Safety Fire Commissioner of Georgia. “With more than 200 tall buildings in Atlanta, we need to consider revolutionary rescue and evacuation solutions, like Escape Rescue System; Georgia should set the example for the rest of the country in emergency preparedness.”

“Commissioner Oxendine along with other building owners in Atlanta had the vision to inquire about our system when it was fresh off the drawing board,” said Yoni Shimshoni, CEO of Escape Rescue Systems. “We are pleased to have had this opportunity to demonstrate the effectiveness of the system to the Georgia delegation.”

Home to over 50 Israeli companies, the State of Georgia is a leading center in the US for Israeli company activity. It has become a popular strategic business destination due primarily to its strong business environment, logistics, human capital and low cost of doing business. The delegation visit to Israel this week, facilitated by the American-Israel Chamber of Commerce, Southeast Region, is part of the State’s effort to entice Israeli businesses to open their U.S. offices in Atlanta and elsewhere throughout the State.

As part of this effort, the delegation has scheduled meetings with dozens of innovative companies and start-ups with promising technologies, including Escape Rescue Systems.

Delegates from Georgia, visiting Israel to investigate new technologies and opportunities for commercial cooperation, include: Ben Taube, Executive Director of the Atlanta-based Southeast Energy Efficiency Alliance; Robin Spratlin, General Manager, Economic Development for Georgia Power; Ervan Hancock, Manager, Renewable & Green Strategies for Georgia Power; Heath Rodman, Esq., Jones Day Law Firm; Maggie Bellville, Partner with CarterBaldwin Executive Search Services; and Tom Glaser, President of the
American-Israel Chamber of Commerce Southeast Region.

John Oxendine, Insurance and Safety Fire Commissioner of Georgia: “We need to consider revolutionary rescue and evacuation solutions, like the Escape Rescue System; Georgia should set the example for the rest of the country in emergency preparedness.”