MONTICELLO, NY  – Starting Tuesday, June 23, as part of the Phase 3 reopening authorized by the state, the Sullivan County DMV (Department of Motor Vehicles) will begin handling in-person transactions at the office in the government center in Monticello. Due to extremely limited staffing, these visits will be limited to Sullivan County residents only and must be by appointment.

“I strongly encourage only those with the most pressing need for an in-person visit – for example, renewal of an expired driver’s license – to attempt to set up an appointment and come to the office,” said county clerk Russell Reeves, who oversees the local DMV operations. “While some of our laid-off staff members will be returning soon, they will not be back immediately, so we simply will not have the capacity to handle our usual large crowds.”

Priority will be given to those county residents needing a NYS photo ID to begin their military service.

To set up an appointment, call 845-794-3872. Messages cannot be left at this number – only appointments made with a live operator will be accepted. Walk-ins CANNOT be serviced at DMV during this time.

While the government center is anticipated to be open to the public on Tuesday, June 23 and thereafter, the public will continue to be expected to wear a facial covering and maintain social distancing.

Drop boxes remain located at the government center’s entrance vestibules, where Sullivan County residents can place their paperwork for processing. Even with the building’s reopening, customers must use a face covering, maintain a social distance of at least 6 feet, and limit vestibule capacity to two individuals.

Mail-in transactions are also allowed, including all vehicle registration activity, renewals, license plate transfers, license plate surrenders, and sales tax transactions. The DMV will mail back completed transactions, and some may require an additional mailing fee. If residents need a more timely return, then expedited mail is available at an additional cost.

Reeves highly recommends that customers use the new SC DMV Remote Transaction System for transaction assistance. Residents can email their completed paperwork directly to the DMV for review at SCNYDMV1@co.sullivan.ny.us. Once the paperwork is approved, residents can put it in the DMV drop box for processing with the appropriate fee paid by cash, check or credit card (with a credit card authorization form completed), thereby avoiding in-person contact and lengthy lines in the future. Please be aware that response times will vary with staff levels.

“I would like to remind county residents to use the local DMV, as Sullivan County retains 12.7% of all revenue from transactions performed in-county versus 3.25% from online State DMV transactions (after meeting a $1 million threshold),” he said. “In addition, most transactions mailed to the Albany and Utica State DMV offices generate 0% revenue for the county.”

“We fully understand how important your DMV transactions are, and we are working hard to meet the needs of our residents,” he added. “We truly appreciate your patience.”