Governor consolidates four state agencies

Missouri Gov. Bob Holden has merged four state agencies that serve motor carriers and railroad operators in the state of Missouri the Department of Transportation, the Department of Reve-nue, the Department of Natural Resources and the De-partment of Economic Devel-opment into a "one-stop shop" for the commercial carrier in-dustry's licensing and permit needs.

According to a press release from the governor's office, an executive order Holden signed March 19, 2001, to improve efficiency and make registration and regulation of motor carriers more cost- effective, also calls for a plan to develop a single motor-carrier service office in Jefferson City to be in place by Jan. 1, 2003.

Operators of commercial ve-hicles, including trucks, tractor-trailers, buses, limousines and others, must now visit the four state agencies separately to ac-quire necessary license and permit documentation.

The four merged departments, which each have a role in registration and regulation of commercial vehicles, have been working together since last year to streamline the processes.

"The motor carrier and railroad industries are vital to Missouri's economy, and streamlining their registration and regulatory processes benefits them, as well as taxpayers," Holden said. "Implementing the Motor Carrier Services Unit will take some effort on everyone's part, but once completed, it is projected to save Missour-ians as much as $3.8 million, with better, more efficient operations."