How's this for government?

Before work this morning I put the new tabs on the Pink Panther. That made me think about how I had already paid the tabs for the Explorer but didn't remember replacing them. I look and sure enough they are expired.

So on the drive into work I call Driver and Vehicle Services (good way to start a beautiful morning) and try to get to the bottom of it. They tell me that they sent them out to me on January 26th. Well, that's great, but I didn't get them....and certainly I have too much going on to track the comings and goings of my vehicle tabs.

Well, because it has been longer than 60 days, apparently they can't just send out new ones to me....I have to "order" duplicates. Of course, that begs the question of whether or not I have to pay for them again. In the most cheerful government voice you can imagine, the nice lady tells me that yes, I have to pay, but not the entire amount....HOORAY!

The total cost will be $9.50. Alright....doable. I can handle that. I handled it pretty well until she told me that the $9.50 broke down as following:

--$1.00 for the new tabs
--$8.50 service fee

Seriously? The tabs can be reproduced for $1.00 but it takes DVS $8.50 to put them in the mail to me? Where are they sending them from? Russia?

Now, it isn't lost on me that certainly some of the fault here lies with me. I should've paid attention and realized I didn't get the tabs in the mail and called earlier. But that doesn't excuse the payment breakdown. Couldn't they just tell people that it is $8.50 for the tabs and a $1.00 service fee? That would make much more sense to me.

Well, despite my misgivings, my $9.50 was sent out this morning. Hopefully I don't get pulled over in the meantime. I could probably handle the $50 ticket. It would be the $185 service fee that would get me a court date to explain my arrest for disorderly conduct and disobeying an officer.