The California Department of Motor Vehicles has named a new acting director. Kathleen Webb, who has been with the state Government Operations Agency (GovOps) and CalPERS, has replaced acting director Bill Davidson, who had replaced permanent director Jean Shiomoto on Dec. 31.
The beleaguered DMV has struggled to implement the state’s new Motor Voter program, which automatically registers people to vote at DMV offices. The Department of Finance is expected next month to release its findings from an audit it is conducting to examine long DMV wait times and aging technology.
Since taking office, Gov. Gavin Newsom has made the DMV a priority. He launched a strike team under GovOps Secretary Marybel Batjer to fix what he called a “chronically mismanaged” department. His office said Newsom is waiting on the strike team to offer suggestions for long-term leadership before he names a new director. He instructed his administration in January to produce an “accelerated Review of Early Findings” within 30 days of the audit’s March release.
