A measure that would double the amount St. Lawrence County can earn from Department of Motor Vehicles transactions made in the county has passed the state Senate.

There are four DMV offices in St. Lawrence County, in Canton, Massena, Ogdensburg and Gouverneur. Local DMV offices that process transactions and provide services required by the state are operated by 51 out of 62 counties in New York State.

Under current law, the state retains more than 87 percent of all fees collected for work done by the county. The measure, sponsored by state Sen. Patty Ritchie, R-Heuvelton, aims to boost local revenues and keep down pressure on property taxes.

Ritchie’s 48th District covers northern and western St. Lawrence County including Ogdensburg, Canton, Gouverneur, Oswegatchie, Waddington, Lisbon, Madrid, Louisville, DeKalb, DePeyster, Hermon, Edwards, Fowler, Rossie, Macomb, Morristown, and Hammond, plus Jefferson and Oswego counties.

Through Ritchie’s legislation, Senate bill 4964-B, the percentage of revenue staying local would double.

“Our counties continue to be bogged down by costly mandates imposed by the state and the situation concerning the low local share of DMV fees is just the latest example,” said Ritchie, who formerly served as St. Lawrence County Clerk and used the office as a way to generate more than $1 million in non-tax revenue annually for the county.

“As a former county clerk, I’ve seen firsthand the amount of work our local DMV offices do on behalf of the state—and simply put, it’s not fair for our counties to be doing the heavy lifting and not be compensated fairly. This legislation would rectify the issue, and provide counties across the state with much-needed mandate relief.”

Now, county clerks retain 12.7 percent of fees collected. Under this bill, the amount would increase to 25 percent.

In addition, the legislation would also allow county clerks to keep 60 percent of the $30 fee collected for the processing of non-driver identification cards. As it stands now, they retain just 30 percent.

The measure was requested by the New York State Association of County Clerks, an organization which Ritchie formerly served as president. In addition, the measure is also a top priority of the New York State Association of Counties (NYSAC).

The measure was sent to the Assembly.