Summer is here, schools are out and people are already packing the airports for the annual migration known as summer vacation. While other states travel to warmer locations, here in Arizona we travel to get away from the summer sun and heat. 

But did you know that starting next May the federal government will require new identification to get past TSA checkpoints? 

That’s right, beginning May 7, 2025, you will need a federally compliant credential such as the Arizona Travel ID to get past TSA checkpoints at airports for domestic flights. This credential is distinguished by a gold star in the upper right corner and is available to Arizona residents as a driver license or identification card.

Don’t get grounded, go to AZTravelID.com to learn more about the process and deadline. Join the 2.25 million Arizonans who have already upgraded to the Arizona Travel ID.

You can walk into an MVD office for this service, but we suggest scheduling an appointment and that can be done online at azmvdnow.gov. Even if you haven’t activated your AZ MVD NOW account, you can still schedule a Travel ID appointment.

Because the Arizona Travel ID is compliant with the federal standards, you will need to provide extra documentation like a birth certificate, Social Security number and proof of Arizona residency.

So enjoy your summer vacation at the beach, mountains or wherever you plan to cool off, and then make plans to update your current drive license or ID card to the Arizona Travel ID so you are ready to travel for next year’s summer getaway!

More information and a full list of qualifying documents are available at azdot.gov/TravelID

Opening the cold soda can on a hot Arizona day gives the sound of cool refreshment:  Pssssssssssssschhh! Hopefully just reading that sentence helps you hear that sound in your head as the warmer temperatures are here. 

Each aluminum soda can has a special pop tab that helps crack open the soft drink.  But did you know that those tabs can also deliver a big difference to help the Ronald McDonald House Charities? Recycling those pop tabs is a fun and easy way to fundraise. The money from those small tabs can make a big difference for the families who stay at any of the houses in Arizona. 

Well, that is exactly what the MVD Community Connections team wanted to find out for themselves. They decided to collect those little aluminum tabs for an entire year and give them to both chapters of the Ronald McDonald House Charities. MVD employees took the time to tear off the tabs from cans, collect them and take them to their respective MVD offices. Together, 27 MVD locations raised over 445 pounds of these valuable tabs. 

The offices that collected the most pop tabs were Glendale (28 pounds), Kingman (66 pounds), Tucson North (73 pounds) and the biggest collection came from the team at the Lake Havasu MVD office. They collected over 164 pounds of pop tabs. 

With offices statewide, the MVD team decided that half of the pop tabs should go to the Ronald McDonald House Charities of Central and Northern Arizona, and the other half to the RMHC of Southern Arizona. 

Each of these chapters help provide families traveling for their child’s medical needs a welcoming home away from home. Where families can rest, rejuvenate, and be together during the difficult times medical treatments can bring.

The Arizona Department of Transportation Motor Vehicle Division has partnered with other agencies to launch a program designed to inform law enforcement and individuals who are on the autism spectrum about what to expect during a traffic stop. 

The Blue Envelope Program works by allowing an individual to present a blue envelope when contacted by law enforcement to indicate that someone in the vehicle may interact differently during the situation. 

The envelope has instructions for the driver as well as the law enforcement officer to follow and advises the officer that someone in the vehicle may respond differently to instructions in situations that can increase anxiety. It’s designed to help guide effective communication, reduce the stress of the encounter and ensure safety of all parties.

ADOT MVD partnered with the Arizona Department of Public Safety (AZDPS) and the University of Arizona’s Police Department, Department of Speech, Language and Hearing Sciences, and the university’s Leadership Education in Neurodevelopmental and Related Disabilities (ArizonaLEND) training program to bring the envelopes to Arizona. 

The partnership included training for several law enforcement agencies from around Arizona at a recent event held by the University of Arizona Police Department. Training with officers and volunteer drivers simulated different traffic stop scenarios with the new blue envelopes.

The blue envelope is a voluntary way to hold important vehicle documents such as insurance, registration and even emergency contact information, while also being a communication tool between the driver and law enforcement during an interaction. However, providing the blue envelope does not guarantee a citation will not be issued. 

The envelopes are now available at all ADOT MVD offices statewide, as well as various law enforcement offices and other locations across the state. You don’t need to register for this program; simply request an envelope at any of these locations. 

For additional information about this program, please visit azdot.gov/BlueEnvelope.

The Arizona Department of Transportation Motor Vehicle Division is proud to again join with the dedicated team at Donor Network of Arizona (DNA) to celebrate National Donate Life Month. Last year 865 people received the gift of life because other individuals understood the impact registering as a donor could have for recipients and their families.

Recently, the team from the South Mountain MVD office helped raise the Donate Life flag in celebration of this month. “What we're really here to celebrate is the incredible capacity for human kindness and generosity,” said Julia Young with DNA.

During the ceremony, MVD employees heard about both sides of donation to understand the importance and value that giving or receiving of an organ can have for the donor recipient as well as their family and friends. “We are focused on efficiency, it would be really easy to say, ‘Can we take this question off because I don’t want to have to explain it and it would speed up my transaction time by a little bit?’” said MVD Director Eric Jorgensen. “So hearing these stories helps us keep in mind the important reason that we take a couple seconds to ask this question.”

Geriece Hightower received new lungs because of the actions and responses of many people, one decision at a time. Her husband did not accept the advice from the medical team that his wife needed to get her affairs in order; instead, he talked with another medical professional who listened and was able to help. That person led to another individual decision and so on until she was placed on the organ transplant waiting list and a single phone call later delivered the life saving news that a donor matched her perfectly allowing for her lifesaving surgery. 

“One conversation can make the difference; in not just numbers but stories,” said Geriece Hightower. “Your one individual act, one MVD office, is the difference between a bunch of statistics versus a story.”

The decision to become a donor is a personal one, and that single decision by one person can impact up to 75 people. One such decision had to be made by Evan’s mother, Melinda Hershkowitz after her son fell ill and passed away unexpectedly in his sleep. 

“I had a phone call while I was laying in the (hospital) bed with him and they asked if I was willing to have him be a donor because he could save countless lives,” said Melinda Hershkowitz. “Without hesitation, I said yes ‘cause I couldn’t let his tragedy end that way. I am beyond blessed that Donate Life stepped into our lives and he was capable of saving so many others and it's not just the recipient that is being saved, it is their families and their loved ones.”

For nearly two decades, ADOT MVD and DNA have partnered to educate people about organ and tissue donation and make it easy to register. Today, more than 4.5 million Arizonans are registered donors and about 95% of donor registrations occur when a person applies for or renews their Arizona driver license or state ID card.

“All important things are a balance of joy and pain,” said Eric Jorgensen. “And I can’t be more proud of the work we do to make it possible to turn pain into joy.”

“So thank you Donate Life so much, you have no idea what this has brought to us,” said Melinda Hershkowitz. “We lost someone we loved dearly, but I know those families when they saw somebody walk in and actually give them good news and let them know their loved one is going to live changed their lives forever. To think of all the lives he saved is just, there’s no words for it, and Donate Life has been truly amazing.”

Visit DonateLifeAZ.org to learn more about organ and tissue donation and register as a donor.

Do you still need to get your 2023 taxes done? Many people are busy and forget until the last minute to deal with the hassle, but with the deadline just days away, the Arizona Department of Transportation Motor Vehicle Division is doing its part to take some of the hassle and stress out of filling out those forms. 

MVD’s online portal, azmvdnow.gov, conveniently provides a free summary of vehicle license tax and fees paid during 2023 for every vehicle registered in your name. So you don’t have to go digging through each vehicle to find the registration and copy the amount paid last year. 

The report is readily available in your secure account. Simply log in and click on the Vehicle Payment Summary (Vehicle License Tax and other Fees) option listed below your driver license and registered vehicle information. This is the simplest and quickest way to get this information for filing taxes.

To activate your account, please visit azmvdnow.gov and follow the prompts. AZ MVD Now accounts are free and protected by several security protocols that are explained on the site and in an accompanying “how to” video.

This will help those dealing with last minute tax preparations. After all, tax forms are due Monday, April 15. It’s one more convenience that MVD provides to get you out of the line and safely on the road.

More than a dozen employees representing five MVD offices as well as technical support teams attended the recent two-day 2024 Maricopa County Stand Down event. Each employee provided identification assistance at the Arizona State Fairgrounds or many veterans in Arizona experiencing housing instability. 

Over the two days, the MVD team helped nearly 350 people with services including driver license duplicates, motor vehicle records, renewals and reinstatements.

Most people do not think about their driver license or ID card once it is in their wallet, but having a valid form of identification is crucial to verify identification when applying for jobs, services, rent or assistance. Veterans, and others, dealing with instability or homelessness need an ID card to receive services that can be extremely impactful towards a more stable housing opportunity. 

This yearly event, hosted by the Arizona Veterans StandDown Alliance, provides thousands of Arizona veterans with access to resources that improve their lives and help them achieve stability.

More information about these events is available at the Arizona Housing Coalition website.

Springtime is full of refreshed energy and hopefulness. Possibly even the inspiration for your next amazing vacation. 

Perhaps you have been dreaming about the lights of the Big Apple and to be in a city that never sleeps? Or two-stepping up and down Broadway in Music City, USA? Maybe you want to take the road less traveled and gaze upon the beauty of Bismarck, Bozeman or Juneau to get away from the crowds and experience the variety of nature. 

These cities are just a plane flight away, but without the Arizona Travel ID you might not be flying to any of these locations next year. 

Beginning May 7, 2025, you will need a federally compliant credential like the Arizona Travel ID to get past TSA checkpoints at airports for domestic flights. Without the Arizona Travel ID or other form of federally compliant identification such as a valid U.S. passport, you risk missing your flight because the standard driver license will not be accepted by TSA. 

You can walk into an MVD office for this service, but we suggest scheduling an appointment at azmvdnow.gov. You will need to show proof of identity, provide your Social Security number and proof of Arizona residency. For a full list of credentials and documents that meet these requirements, please visit azdot.gov/TravelID. 

This credential is distinguished by a gold star in the upper right corner of a driver license or identification card. The cost is $25, and the credential is valid for eight years, per federal law. You will be issued a new ID that will come in the mail in approximately 10 days. 

With the new AZ Travel ID, the possibilities are endless. A weekend trip to D.C to see the cherry blossoms in full bloom, or some quiet time fishing or swimming in the city of lakes, Minneapolis. Cleveland rocks for those passionate about music history, as the home to the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame. 

So don’t let your vacation dreams turn into a nightmare, get the Arizona Travel ID this year and be ready to fly in 2025.

March in Arizona means the sun is still warm and inviting, Major League Baseball teams are here for the Cactus League and hopefully your favorite college basketball teams are making their case to be invited to the NCAA tournament (Arizona, GCU, NAU and ASU, we are cheering for you). Another thing happens this time of year: Schools take a week off for spring break. 

Spring break is the time to catch up on tasks like cleaning the house or visiting the MVD to renew vehicle registrations, update address information or request a duplicate ID card. March is typically a very busy month at the MVD, and your friends and neighbors may also be planning to visit the MVD during this time off.  

So what can you do if you want to take advantage of this time off and get your MVD services done? Well, If you have not been to AZMVDNOW.gov lately, you are missing out on an easy, secure way to get your MVD business done. That’s right, just maybe you don’t need to visit the MVD office after all. You might be able to handle your business online while enjoying the sunshine at a spring training baseball game. 

The online MVD portal offers customers a safe and secure way to conveniently conduct business. Transactions that can be completed on the site include renewing vehicle registration, getting a replacement driver license, transfering titles, selecting a specialty plate (possibly one of the universities in March Madness), receiving registration refunds, or even scheduling an appointment at your local MVD office if you still need to stop in. 

Over 4 million Arizonans have discovered the safest, fastest and most convenient way to complete services with the Arizona Department of Transportation Motor Vehicle Division.

To activate your account, please visit AZMVDNow.gov and follow the prompts. These accounts are free and protected by several security protocols that are explained on the site and in an accompanying “how to” video.

If you need to talk with an MVD employee, you can ‘live chat’ with an MVD employee. Customers are able to contact MVD via chat through azdot.gov to address questions, or even complete some services from the comforts of your own computer or cell phone in real time. 

Both of these convenient and secure options might help get you out of the line and safely on the road, whether that is to the ballpark, beach or to your friends house for the tournament.