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David Stanley Ford

Oklahoma tag agents differ in donations
Discrepancies in collections prompt letter from association about 2001 law

BY ANN KELLEY    Comments Comment on this article19
Published: November 2, 2009



Some Oklahoma tag agents are breaking a law that requires they ask their customers to consider giving $1 for organ donation education, records show.

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Oklahoma tag agents differ in donations

Oct 30Some of the state's 300 tag agents have not been asking customers...

The 2001 law says tag agents and their employees must tell every person obtaining a driver’s license, identification card, title or tag. Some tag agencies in the past 12 months have collected nothing, records show.

"I don’t think tag agents are purposely thumbing their nose at the law, but it’s obvious some aren’t taking it seriously,” said Jeff Segell, an Oklahoma City tag agent and former president of the Oklahoma Tag Agent Group.

Segell, along with state Department of Public Safety Commissioner Kevin Ward, in September sent a letter to all 305 tag agents in the state. In it they point out discrepancies in the amounts some tag agents are collecting for donor education compared to others.

One agent, who issued 850 licenses from January 2006 to June 2008, recorded that 34.6 percent getting licenses donated a dollar. Another agent issued more than 16,000 licenses and collected nothing, according to the letter.

"Unfortunately, if this decline continues, legislators could possibly tighten restrictions regarding the procedures currently in place,” the letter states.

In big bold, underlined letters it reads: "Therefore, as tag agents, it is in your best interest, and we stress the importance, to comply with the law.”

Newcastle tag agent Tamera Brockhaus said she doesn’t like putting her customers on the spot for contributions, even though she thinks it’s a worthy cause.

"I think it puts tag agents in a position to become solicitors for more nonprofit causes,” Brockhaus said. "I’m not for that at all.”

Yukon tag agent Kaye Blevins said her employees weren’t asking for the donation until recently.

Brenda Qualls, tag agent in Haskell, runs a one-woman operation.

"I try to make it a point to ask, but sometimes, honestly, I get busy and forget,” Qualls said.

Ardmore tag agent Elaine Kittrell is one of the top state collectors for donations. "It’s sad. I don’t know why they wouldn’t ask,” Kittrell said. "Maybe they’d think differently if the need for organ donation touched their lives.”

Who benefits?
The donations go into a revolving fund. A governor’s advisory council distributes money to education about organ, eye and tissue donation.

For fiscal year 2008-09 ending in June, state tag agents collected $148,872 for the Organ Donor Education and Awareness Program. The biggest portion, $106,000, is allocated to LifeShare Transplant Donor Services of Oklahoma.

In Oklahoma, 1.7 million (72 percent) of people with licenses have agreed to be organ donors. It’s estimated that as many as 70 percent of those would donate a dollar if asked, Van Staverns said.

In fiscal year 2008-09, only 13.8 percent of the 1,078,847 Oklahomans who obtained driver’s licenses or identification cards contributed $1, said Diane Lewis, council chair for the Oklahoma Donor Education and Awareness Program.

Lewis said they tracked 205 state tag agents and found that 116 agents averaged less than 10 percent of their customers making a $1 contribution.

In the 30 months studied, 60 of those agents averaged less than $10 per year in contributions, and 22 of the 60 collected nothing. Seven of the 60 agents were some of the busiest in the state, issuing more than 5,000 licenses and identification cards annually, Lewis said.

"We didn’t do the study to embarrass any of the tag agents who aren’t asking for the donation,” Lewis said. "We want them to understand it’s not just about following the law, but helping the people in their communities that need organ donation.”

The Oklahoman’s Watchdog Team: Looking out for you. Go online to NewsOK.com/watchdog.

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David Stanley Ford


Related Topics: Health and Fitness, Organ Transplantation and Donation


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@j stillwater,
When I ask for the donation and they say yes they want to donate...what do you suppose happens next? DUH! We have to collect the money and then deposit the funds collected daily. You obviously have no idea how any of our business works. Try coming and working a day in my shoes and see if you don't agree that this is a stupid law!!! And yes....I comply because I am forced to. And.....I have contacted my senator. What have you done?
Tracy, Shawnee - Nov 3, 2009 at 5:25 pm
This is a good example of how our local state government works, if you want one dollar for every create a law that requires someone to ask for it. It would be far simpler to add a dollar to the cost of licenses and tags then transfer the money over yearly. Personally, I think it is a law worth breaking if the legislature is too stupid to properly write the law.
Richard, Oklahoma City - Nov 2, 2009 at 11:42 pm
J,

Go add up the numbers in the OKC phone book, and call back when you're done. DUH!
Cletus Jenkins II, mayberry - Nov 2, 2009 at 8:59 pm
@Tracy of Shawnee,

They're not making you collect for a cause. They're requiring you to ASK for a donation. No collection is required.

Also, whether you agree with the law or not doesn't matter. It is still law right now and you are thus legally bound to comply. Until it changes, you cannot simply ignore it because you disagree with it unless you want to be in blatant violation of state law.

The solution is to get rid of the law, not to ignore it. DUH.
J, Stillwater - Nov 2, 2009 at 4:18 pm
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I work at a tag agency and would like to share my perspective on this issue. First of all we are not state employees. We are governed by the state and must follow the laws and guidelines set by the state. We take a lot of heat from the public in this business like we are the one's who write the laws. We have a lot of responsibility and it is not an easy job. Asking for an extra dollar from people who can barely afford to buy their tag, I think is going too far. Not only does it put the customer on the spot but it is just one more thing for us to have to remember to do in the midst of the transaction. I don't agree with the law and if they are going to make us collect for organ funds, then why not every other good cause out there? Like child abuse, the dangers of drinking and driving...etc. Come on people...give us a break. Tracy...Shawnee
Tracy, Shawnee - Nov 2, 2009 at 1:59 pm
I work at a tag agency and would like to share my perspective on this issue. First of all we are not state employees. We are governed by the state and must follow the laws and guidelines set by the state. We take a lot of heat from the public in this business like we are the one's who write the laws. We have a lot of responsibility and it is not an easy job. Asking for an extra dollar from people who can barely afford to buy their tag, I think is going too far. Not only does it put the customer on the spot but it is just one more thing for us to have to remember to do in the midst of the transaction. I don't agree with the law and if they are going to make us collect for organ funds, then why not every other good cause out there? Like child abuse, the dangers of drinking and driving...etc. Come on people...give us a break.
Tracy, Shawnee - Nov 2, 2009 at 1:58 pm
David, some of us don't use our drivers license for anything except id and driving. I am completely willing for my organs to be donated, and my family knows that. To suggest that choosing not to have that on my license should prevent me from getting an organ transplant is ridiculous. I don't want to join your club either. I definitely don't think you should choose who gets an organ and who doesn't. It sounds like a group of people who want to make sure that they get what should be freely available to all. This is just another form of discrimination. Go ahead if it makes you feel more secure or somehow superior, but don't presume that you should be allowed to choose whether I live or die.
Danita, SHAWNEE - Nov 2, 2009 at 1:57 pm
I BOUGHT MY TAG THIS MORNING ASND WAS NOT ASKED IF I WANTED TO DONATE, AND THIS WAS IN NORMAN.
Carl, Norman - Nov 2, 2009 at 1:47 pm
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Whether it is a good law or not is irrelevant. If you don't like the law, have the legislature get rid of it. Until then, the tag agencies need to comply. I use an agency in Yukon and I have NEVER been asked to donate to this program.
John, Yukon - Nov 2, 2009 at 12:37 pm
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g, okcity. You are exactly correct. Shut them down. People are always talking asbout keeping up other states. start by collecting a sales tax on anything that uses a tag at the point of sale. Move the tag sales to the court house or in large urban areas to a branch office. You can now renew your tag by mail if you desire. And I do not call the tag agencies corrupt.
BERT, HENRYETTA - Nov 2, 2009 at 12:22 pm
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These tag agencies should be shut down. It is almost 2010. We can do this a lot cheaper and efficient without going through these corrupt businesses.
g, oklahoma city - Nov 2, 2009 at 12:10 pm
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Even though I'm an organ donor on my DL, I steadfastly refuse to donate the $1 when asked - and the jerks in the downtown Edmond Tag Agency, who are legendary in their rudeness and unprofessionalism even for the standards of tag agents, ALWAYS ask. And loudly.

A Tag Agency is not like Cafe 501 or Target: it is a place where one HAS to transact business in order to stay within the bounds of the laws of the state of Oklahoma for any number of things, from a DL renewal to tagging a new vehicle. One is COMPELLED to do business there, whether one wants to or not.

It is not the place of government, acting through their private intermediary the tag agent, to solicit donations for ANY "good cause" at the point of sale in such a business. It puts people on the spot, and they feel coerced to give that $1, whether they want to or not.

Now, inevitably the chorus of "it's only a buck," "what if you need an organ transplant someday?" blah, blah, blah comes flying from all directions. Those are IRRELEVANCIES - it is bad policy when government, via a private party or no, puts citizens in the position of being hit up for donations in a venue that citizens MUST transact business in and with. It has the hint of compulsion- and it's meant to.
Jason, Edmond - Nov 2, 2009 at 12:05 pm
Just because an agent isn't turning in revenues doesn't mean they are not asking. The dollar is for education and the law went into effect in 2001. That's eight years ago. In the past eight years, most likely, everyone has said ok and donated a dollar at least once if not more. A donation is not required. Maybe some feel like they don't need to continue to donate because they already have. Maybe some are against it and refuse to help. I totally agree with Dean in Newcastle and Mark in Edmond.
jeni, quinlan - Nov 2, 2009 at 11:29 am
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Good cause - stupid law. Let tag agents do what they're supposed to do and find other ways to fund optional programs. United Way?
Teamless, In Seattle - Nov 2, 2009 at 11:12 am
For one this shouldn't be a law. Two, the time spent making this a law and the time spent performing this study cost the taxpayers more than this program will generate in its lifetime. These type of programs are best left to non-profits and not taxpayer funded government agencies.
Dean, Newcastle - Nov 2, 2009 at 11:05 am
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I agree with Mark. Tag agents should not be forced to solicit donations, even if it is for a very worthy cause. Maybe the process can be automated somehow. PetSmart already asks every customer whether or not they want to donate a dollar to homeless pets...Can't the State come up with something similar?
S, Yukon - Nov 2, 2009 at 7:49 am
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According to this story, only 72% of Oklahoma drivers have agreed to donate their organs when they die. I bet every single one of the other 28% would accept an organ transplant if they needed one to live. Half of the organs transplanted in America go to people who haven't agreed to donate their own organs. As long as we let non-donors jump to the front of the waiting list when they need transplants we'll always have an organ shortage. Over 8,000 Americans died last year because there aren't enough organs to go around. Over 50 of these are Oklahomans. There is a simple way to put a big dent in the organ shortage -- allocate donated organs first to people who have agreed to donate their own organs. Anyone who wants to donate their organs to others who have agreed to donate theirs can join LifeSharers, a non-profit network of organ donors who agree to offer their organs first to other organ donors when they die. Membership is free at www.lifesharers.org or by calling 1-888-ORGAN88. There is no age limit, parents can enroll their minor children, and no one is excluded due to any pre-existing medical condition. LifeSharers has over 13,000 members, including 90 members in Oklahoma. Giving organs first to organ donors will convince more people to register as organ donors. It will also make the organ allocation system fairer. People who aren't willing to share the gift of life should go to the back of the waiting list as long as there is a shortage of organs.

David J. Undis
Executive Director
LifeSharers
David, Nashville - Nov 2, 2009 at 7:20 am
More nanny-state big government crap.
JEFF, THOMAS - Nov 2, 2009 at 5:09 am
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I think it is for a very good cause but for it to be a law that tag agents are forced to ask everyone is taking things too far. A sign posted in the offices suggesting the donation and briefly explaining the benefits should be enough.
Mark, Edmond - Nov 2, 2009 at 12:08 am
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