TACOMA, Wash. — Expect to wait for hours at the Pierce County Auditor’s Office to get a passport, renew your car or boat tabs, or apply for a marriage or business license this summer.
The Auditor’s Office tweeted Monday about wait times lasting up to two hours due to lack of staff. They also said they will turn away passport applicants who come in unprepared after 4 p.m.
"Like most of County government, the Auditor’s Office is thinly staffed. However, during the summer season, we’re particularly busy with marriage applications, passports, and boat registrations. During this peak time, we have unfortunately experienced unexpected turnover," Julie Anderson, Pierce County auditor, said in an email.
There are four vacancies in the licensing division of the office, which Anderson said were due to recent "catastrophic medical events."
Pierce County has grown in recent years, with record-high tourism spending in the county for 2018 and Redfin reporting Tacoma as the hottest housing market this past spring.
The Auditor’s Office contracts with local businesses for vehicle and vessel licenses and encouraged people to go there instead. The services cost the same at the main office or at the other locations. They also ask that customers come prepared with necessary forms and to check if their needs can be met online.
In addition to their main office in Tacoma, you can go to these 10 businesses for vehicle and vessel licenses:
A+ AUTO LICENSING INC.
- 18207 Veterans Memorial Dr E Ste 4
- Bonney Lake, WA 98391-5165
EATONVILLE LICENSING
- 820 State Route 161 N
- Eatonville, WA 98328-9099
FIFE LICENSE & TITLE
- 4905 Pacific Hwy E Ste 2A
- Fife, WA 98424-2649
PENINSULA LICENSE AGENCY
- 3206 50th St Ct NW A109
- Gig Harbor, WA 98335
LAKEWOOD VEHICLE VESSEL LICENSING
- 10102 Bristol Ave SW
- Lakewood, WA 98499-5012
MCCALLUM LICENSE AGENCY, INC. (DOWNTOWN)
- 1325 E Main
- Puyallup, WA 98372-3136
MCCALLUM LICENSE AGENCY, INC. (SOUTH HILL)
- 16126 Meridian E Ste 107
- Puyallup, WA 98375-7202
EZ AUTO LICENSE & TITLE
- 22225 Mountain Hwy E, Ste F
- Spanaway, WA 98387
PARKLAND AUTO LICENSING, INC.
- 215 Garfield St S Ste 1A
- Tacoma, WA 98444-5154
TACOMA LICENSE & TITLE
- 6718 19th St W
- University Place, WA 98466-5527