We are three months into the new year and I say with certainty that AAMVA is using 2023 to build a sound path to the future. Our member-driven initiatives in digital identity, contact center modernization, exploration of electronic titling standards, migration to cloud technology and meaningful member engagement are among the activities designed to help members take customer service and safety to the next level. It’s a terrific way to honor the foundation laid 90 years ago when AAMVA was created by jurisdictions convinced that there would be strength in numbers in their effort to improve driver and roadway safety.

Our work is made possible by the many amazing staff who contribute to AAMVA’s organizational success. In recognition of our talented team, I will invite coworkers to use my MOVE column to offer their take on AAMVA’s past, present and future. There is no better person to get us started than everyone’s favorite podcaster, Ian Grossman!

Over the past nine decades, AAMVA has changed almost as much as the cars we drive. From paper to plastic to mobile. From leather to metal to digital. As vehicles have evolved, so have ideas about traffic safety. New security threats have required better ID safeguards. To continue the delivery of core services, AAMVA’s members have also adapted and grown, maintaining excellence in service. Yet, for the past 90 years, the primary purpose of licensing drivers and credentialing vehicles has remained, as has AAMVA’s mission. In 1933, government leaders gathered with the recognition that collaboration for the primary purpose of uniformity and reciprocity would better serve their citizens and the transportation network. Today, as AAMVA celebrates 90 years, we still follow that North Star.

As AAMVA and our state, provincial and territorial member leadership speed toward our centennial, it seems technology is driving ever faster change. So, how will our past inform our future? The foundations of AAMVA’s robust portfolio, spanning programs, technology, advocacy, education and community building, lie in our origins as a small association that hosted conferences and shared early standards. Today, AAMVA’s large and diverse workforce brings together leaders in their field, technology innovators and internationally recognized subject matter experts who work every day supporting members. From a launching pad of 90 years’ experience, we move forward to reach 100 while working on some of the most exciting developments yet, including widespread implementation of State-to-State and NMVTIS, mobile driver license deployment, and electronic titling and vehicle records.

During the next 10 years, AAMVA will continue finding novel ways to support our members. This means striving for more record-breaking meetings and conferences, meaningful impacts on Capitol Hill and innovative ways to share information. While we cannot predict all the changes that our community will face, it is certain AAMVA will still be standing alongside our members. With its support network of people, information, and technology, and delivery of high-quality tools, AAMVA will remain an essential resource for North American motor vehicle and law enforcement officials. As AAMVA, its members and partners move forward into the new decade, we will continue working to ensure safe drivers, safe vehicles, secure identities, and most importantly, save lives.