photo by: Josie Heimsoth/Journal-World

The inside of the new Treasurer's Office, pictured Friday, October 25, 2024, located on 2601 W. Sixth St. includes a lobby with seating, close parking and a drop box for convenience.

As all motor vehicle services prepare to trade downtown for Sixth Street, the Douglas County Treasurer says the change will improve training and efficiency. Here’s what to know about the move.

Douglas County Treasurer Adam Rains said the reasoning behind the change is to support the Treasurer’s Office staff through immersive training experiences together. With all the staff moving to the new treasurer’s office location at 2601 W. Sixth St., all of the service desks will be fully staffed and the office is anticipated to be more efficient.

There have been eight employees that have worked for the Treasurer’s Office less than five years, Rains told the Journal-World. However, three employees have been with the department for at least 10 years.

“In (2023) and ’24 we hired eight people,” Rains told commissioners on Wednesday. “That means eight people who have a lot to learn. These are transactions that take time. We say once you hit your five year mark, you’re very independent, you’re very efficient, you can run through things by yourself and not require a lot of help.”

He added that since 2019, there have been 11 staff members who have left the Treasurer’s Office, another five employees moved to other county departments and two employees moved to the department’s tax department.

Beginning on Feb. 16, the Sixth Street location will have all of the Treasurer’s Office employees operating out of that office, and all in-person motor vehicle transactions will need to happen at that location.

While the Douglas County Courthouse is a closer drive for people living in Baldwin City and Eudora, Rains said the Sixth Street location is larger than the downtown location, and it will be able to contain all of the staff while they continue to go through training and provide service to customers.

In 2025, the Douglas County Courthouse processed about 10,000 more transactions than the Sixth Street Office, Rains said. And last year wait times were nearly the same at each office with 16.7 minutes in the downtown office and 16.6 minutes at the Sixth Street office.

PAYING TO PAY IN PERSON

In their 2026 legislative statement, Douglas County commissioners said they support a local service fee in order to help fund motor vehicle services.

Currently, there is a $3 fee for people who complete their motor vehicle transactions at one of the in-person offices. The fee is to help cover operational costs not met by the Kansas Department of Revenue, and it is separate from taxes or processing fees for credit and debit cards.

Rains said via email that in 2024, this fee changed from $5 only at satellite offices to $3 at all locations, including the courthouse, Sixth Street and the Baldwin City office. Rains said with this fee, the Treasurer’s Office collected $125,858 in 2023, $157,070 in 2024 and $161,633 last year. This fee helps cover salaries, benefits and other costs of operating motor vehicle services.

photo by: Josie Heimsoth/Journal-World

Douglas County Commissioner Patrick Kelly spoke at the ribbon cutting ceremony for the new Douglas County treasurer office, 2601 W. Sixth St., on Friday, October 25, 2024.

FAQ

• I live outside of Lawrence and don’t want to commute to the Sixth Street office. What can I do?

Baldwin City customers can visit the Treasurer’s Office Satellite Office in the city inside Baldwin City Market, 112 Eighth St., during the second full week of each month.

“What we’ll do during this process is just evaluate how things are going,” Rains told commissioners on Wednesday. “If we see an increase in traffic at Baldwin, we have a good relationship with the bank there … so we have that ability to say ‘okay, maybe we need to extend it to two weeks,’ and then kind of moving forward with that.”

Otherwise, several services can be completed online. People can renew motor vehicle tags at https://ikan.ks.gov and pay property taxes at https://propertyinfo.douglascountyks.org. Drop boxes are also located outside the Douglas County Courthouse and the Sixth Street Office. Renewals and payments can also be mailed.

• What about a potential satellite office or service location in Eudora?

There are currently no plans underway to establish a service location in Eudora or another city in Douglas County. Rains told commissioners that while it’s been something the department’s considered, conversations with Eudora would be needed to determine the best location and setting up the services would take time.

• I don’t want to pay the $3 service fee. What can I do?

People can renew motor vehicle tags at https://ikan.ks.gov and pay property taxes at https://propertyinfo.douglascountyks.org. Drop boxes are also located outside the Douglas County Courthouse and the Sixth Street Office. Renewals and payments can also be mailed.

• Will motor vehicle services ever open back up at the Douglas County Courthouse?

Rains did not say that this would be a permanent change, but told commissioners on Wednesday that the department will continuously evaluate how the move has impacted services throughout the year to help determine the best solution for motor vehicle services going forward.

“Staff will collaborate and discuss options as needed,” Rains said via email. “We are focused on making this successful to increase our team’s service experience and knowledge.”

• What are the Sixth Street Office’s hours of operation and how do I set up an appointment?

The office operates Monday through Friday from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. To get in line for the virtual waiting room, visit dgcoks.gov/treasurer.

• What services are still available at the Douglas County Courthouse?

Rains said that although some Treasurer’s Office employees will continue working at the courthouse, the department will not provide any public services. The Courthouse will continue to house other county departments such as the County Clerk, Administration, the Appraiser’s Office and Register of Deeds.