COLUMBIA--Gov. Mark Sanford announced changes to the state Division of Motor Vehicles that he hopes will transform the torture of waiting in line into the relative ease of going online.

License renewals over the Internet and summer Saturday office hours in some markets, including Charleston, were just a couple of the internal changes at the beleaguered DMV advanced by Sanford Thursday afternoon.

Critics said it's about time something was done about the much-maligned agency, while others said DMV's problems are the fault of a penny-pinching General Assembly.

Flanked by legislative leaders who predict passage of DMV reform legislation, Sanford said the internal changes are another piece of the package designed to make the agency more cost-efficient and user-friendly.

"If you're looking for one agency that has historically symbolized everything that doesn't work in state government, it's the DMV," Sanford said.

The DMV has been plagued with long lines, slow service and just general contempt from the public for years. When the agency switched computer systems last year, it was not uncommon to wait the better part of a day to get a driver's license.Sanford said these internal moves, coupled with restructuring legislation, might not immediately shorten DMV lines. But, he said, they represent the first step in a "comprehensive makeover for the one agency that has the most face-time with South Carolinians of any in state government."

The plans for DMV, which involve use of in-house labor on the agency's information technology and inmate labor for maintenance, were primarily generated from inside the agency, according to J.T. Gandolfo, who was chairman of Sanford's DMV task force.

But members of a House DMV ad hoc committee said the ideas were not so different from ones advanced more than a year ago.

"Most of it sounds pretty familiar, but it's better late than never," said Rep. John Graham Altman III, R-Charleston, vice chairman of the House committee on the DMV. "I'm very happy to see some reform coming."

Senate President Pro Tem Glenn McConnell and House Speaker David Wilkins predicted comprehensive DMV reform legislation would pass the General Assembly before adjournment in June.

In March, the House passed Wilkins' bill to make the DMV a stand-alone agency with an executive director reporting directly to the governor. Also, driver's licenses would be issued for 10 years, relieving the offices of an estimated 250,000 customers this year alone.

McConnell said when the Senate finishes debating the state budget, it might invoke special rules to get the DMV reform on the calendar and passed in the waning days of the session.

The internal changes, which will be implemented by the end of June, include a phase-in of online services, a May 28 training day for all DMV employees -- a day when offices across the state will be closed -- and Saturday hours beginning June 7 at six regional offices, including at Leeds Avenue in North Charleston.

Gandolfo said the cost of the changes will be negligible, and Sanford said they eventually will save money, up to $2.5 million in technology and maintenance costs alone.

But the most important aspect, Sanford said, was better customer service.

"This is one of those quality-of-life issues," he said.

DMV ONLINE

Several DMV transactions that have required trips to an office will be available online next month. The effective dates:

-- June 8: Driver record and points status; complete a pending registration (including paying late registration penalties); and pay driver's license reinstatement fees.

-- June 18: Renew ID card; obtain duplicate driver's license; obtain duplicate registration card.

-- June 30: Renew drivers license, change address, change registration address (for a specific vehicle).

Additional transactions will be offered later this year.