Take a quick look at the cars parked outside the Harvey County Driver's License Office. You'll find a few with Sedgwick County tags. Their owners are inside. Like Jared Arrington, they've found they can do their DMV business quicker a county away.
“We went into the office at Twin Lakes and signed-in through the text messaging system. Drove around. Wasted about an hour. Went and found some lunch and said, why not go to Newton,” Arrington said.
By the time Arrington was finished in Newton, his number still hadn't been called in Wichita.
“Even if you come up here, and wait 30 minutes or 45 minutes, or drive up here... the time is still shorter,” Harvey County Commissioner Chip Westfall said.
But that makes it longer for Harvey County residents, who now have to wait in a line. That's why Westfall is proposing a two-dollar fee, out-of-county residents will pay. That's in addition to the county's three-dollar service fee at the driver's license office.
“They need to pay their fair share of running the court house business,” Westfall said.
FactFinder12 checked with the Department of Revenue. It's okay with the extra fee. In fact, Butler County is already charging it at its driver's license office.
The revenue from the out-of-county fee would help the treasurer's office run the driver's license office, maybe with more staff.
"I don't think we're going to get rich over it, but it would help man our offices,” Harvey County Treasurer Becky Fields said.
Arrington says he would be willing to pay the extra fee.
"It would be worth that two-dollars honestly,” Arrington said.
It could be in place beginning in January.
Butler and Sumner counties are also seeing an increase in out-of-county customers. Butler County charges a three-dollar out-of-county fee on top of its regular service charge. Sumner County only charges a two-dollar service fee.
