I am taking a trip out of the country in a few months and, as a result, have have found myself in need of something I’ve never had before - a passport. I have been out of the country before, but only to places where a valid US driver’s license would get you in and out.
In order to get a passport you need, among other things, a certified copy of your birth certificate. Guess what I couldn’t find anywhere in the house? That’s right, my birth certificate. Oh well, looks like this calls for a wasted half day visiting the county of my birth to obtain said certificate, and pronto because it can take 6 weeks to process a new passport. I went online to get an address for the county vital records department and what to my wandering eyes should appear but an online order form! With an option to Fed Ex the certificate to me! At $26, not a cheap Fed Ex option, but cheaper than losing a half day of work. The site said to expect a 5 day turnaround time. Hmm, 5 days. That puts me about 8 weeks from my departure date, cutting it kinda close, but it saves a drive downtown and an afternoon dealing personally with the bureaucracy. Let’s do it!
I ordered the certificate yesterday at about 10:00 AM. Fed Ex delivered it today at about 9:00AM. A 23 hour turnaround from online order to receipt! For a government document! From government people! Those passport people have their work cut out for them if they want to match the speed of the vital records folk!
I’m also in the midst of getting my very first passport! When it came to getting a copy of my birth certificate, I fortunately recalled that mom had ordered extra copies back when she got us kids Social Secuity cards (apparently, you could claim your kids on your taxes without a SSN up until then). I got one from her, perfectly good, not even yellowed, but it has a request date at the top from late 1987.
The myth of government inefficiency is one of those little shibboleths that some folks love to believe, often in the face of considerable evidence to the contrary. Of course, it’s also perfect for business interests who want to profit from taking over government services.
Sure, the government’s not perfect, and plenty of things could be done better and more efficiently. But for an entity so massive and complicated, which has to deal with so many people in so many different capacities, the government actually operates very efficiently in many ways.
As with most things, we tend to remember our bad experiences, and so people recall the time they waited too long for a passport or spent three hours at the DMV, and that experience comes to symbolize “government inefficiency” for them. It’s good to see that some people also note the good experiences.
The Massachusetts Registry of Motor Vehicles is another agency that has benefited immeasureably from the advent of computers and the internet. Dealing with them is the next thing to pleasant, as opposed to the interminable torture it used to be. Half the time I can just log on to the internet and renew whatever it is I have to renew.
Just today I renewed my Illinois license plates on-line. It took all of a minute, and beat the hell out of standing in line somewhere to do it.
The last time I renewed my driver’s license was the same thing. Check a few boxes on-line and I saved who knows how much time I would have wasted doing it on purpose.
Tell that to anybody who’s ever had to deal with the INS. (Or whatever they’re called now.)
Doctor Jackson, do the world a favor and write a brief note to the county office expressing your gratitude for their superb service. Very few competent government employees ever get complimented.
But what get me about the perennial criticism of government inefficiency is not so much that it’s unwarranted—because there are times when the criticism is fully deserved—but that so many people seem to assume that all government is inefficient and, furthermore, that this inefficiency is inevitable.
Yes, there are problems with government waste and inefficiency, but most of these problems could, if people were willing, actually be addressed. Some folks give the impression that the only way to improve government bureaucracy is to do away with it altogether and let the private sector take over. I don’t believe that’s necessary.
As for the INS (or DHS, as i believe they are now), i’m about to deal with them in the most challengin way; i’m applying for my US residency. It could be that, after this process, i’ll regret ever defending government agencies. I’ll let you know how it goes.
Ya know, that’s a funny thing. I do make an effort to let someone know when things go right. It’s the nice thing to do. In this case, however, they’re making it difficult. I was going to send a quick email to the county vital records department, but no email address is listed (the online order site appears to be handled by a third party vendor which forwards the request to the county). I went up one level to find an email address for the Health Dept., of which vital records is a part. No address. I called the only phone number listed and got a recorded message with the dept. hours and instructions for ordering records. No option to speak to a rep and zeroing out gives a “no attendant” message and restarts the recording.
I want to tell them thank you, but they won’t let me!
I hope I’m wrong, mhendo, but I think you’re in for more red sticky stuff than a Kremlin ticker tape parade. Immigration has always seemed to be the most inefficient government organization around. They tend to make FEMA look like Fed Ex. And this coming from one who’s MIL and FIL made a career of INS. I wish you the best of luck and God speed on your application. I sincerely hope that you come back and post a thread entitled “Doctor Jackson was wrong!”. But I’m not betting on it.
What’s really bad is when the mantra of “the government is always inefficient” enters the political field. What do you think happens when people who profess that government service is always terrible take over the government? Can you say “self-fulfilling prophecy”?
I went through this almost six years ago, so my memory is a bit rusty here. However, there are evidently two types of birth certificates, and you may or may not have the right certificate. Either are usually good enough for most things requiring a birth certificate. However, passports require a seal or somesuch thing from the issuer. My first visit for a passport was rejected; thank goodness I wasn’t far from where I was born and could go there to get the correct one.
If it is getting down to the wire, I think that the passport people offer an expedited service (at a fee, of course).
I have to admit I used to DREAD dealing with the DMV based on past experiences. I was convinced they were the most idiotic, lazy, self entitled bunch there ever was.
But a year ago I had to get my liscence renewed. It was quick, easy, and the people were friendly. The manager of the facility was actually waiting at the door as people left to ask if they had a good experience and if there was anything they could do to improve.
Last time I dealt the the local DMV, it was very efficient. I made an appointment online about a week previous for a 10-minute slot and arrived there 5 minutes early. I stood in line for about 3 minutes to check in for my appointment, and then waited for 10 for my number to get called. I registered a boat, a trailer, and a car that day. Total time out of my schedule: 20 minutes.
Lately, I’ve been dealing with the FDA some. They reply to my email queries usually in about 48 hours. They also told me my papaerwork would take 6-8 weeks, bit it only took about 4!
As someone who works with DHS every single day, Og help you. DHS was cobbled together from over 20 agencies, still doesn’t have a clear command structure or a permanent budget, and is probably the worst agency I’ve ever worked with. However, when it comes to LPR claims or adjusting status in the US, they tend to be of the school of ‘as long as all of your forms are filled out right and you’re not flying an airliner into a school, then welcome aboard’. Which is bad for me as a officer who investigates visa and immigration fraud, because lots of folks adjust status in the US, then tell all their relatives that it’s easy.
I work at the Tennessee Department Of Transportation’s Aerial Photography Laboratory.
We take the aerial photos that are converted into maps & highway blueprints in this State.
Our books are in the black. Not only do we make photos on an efficient basis for the State, but many building contractors, real estate agents and others buy from us. We generate a (small) amount of income for Tennessee.
We are indeed efficient.
I expect Sam Stone to appear any second & brand us all Communists for saying good things about government.
You can get a passport in one day if you have to. There are special services in some larger passport offices that allow you to pay an expediting fee to have it done overnight. I did mine that way and it was one of the only times I felt lucky to live in Boston because they have an large expediting service here. It wasn’t outrageously expensive, just a hundred and change IIRC. There are courier services that do that for desperate people in other areas but they cost big bucks.
Just saying, if things go wrong, there are still ways.
