JACKSONVILLE, Fla. -- Division of Motor Vehicle and tax collector's offices are mobbed Monday by people trying to beat large fee increases for driver's licenses, registration and other motor vehicle fees.

Already upset that the Florida Legislature raised fees -- dramatic increases in some cases -- effective Sept. 1, frustration mounted as people trying to renew early faced waits of more than three hours. The lines were slowed farther when the statewide DMV computer system crashed twice before noon Monday.

Lines are reported at DMV and tax collector's offices across the state. At at least two offices in Jacksonville were forced to briefly close their doors when fire department enforced building capacity limits.

Duval County Tax Collector Mike Hogan ordered hours extended Monday at its nine branches, so they will remain open until 7:30 p.m.

"I can't tell you how wonderful the people have been as far as their patience," Hogan said outside the Kernan office at 2 p.m. "I'm sure they're annoyed; some have been in line as much as three hours to get a transaction taken care of."

State DMV officials told Channel 4 their offices will stay open until 5:30 p.m. and that everyone in line at that time will be served.

DMV director of communications, Dave Westberry, told Channel 4 at midday Monday that If computer problems prevent people from getting served, an individual agency may offer a voucher that will allow the person to return by Sept. 10 and complete the transaction at the lower fee rate.

Initial driver licenses are going up from $27 to $48. Six-year renewals are more than doubling from $20 to $48. Motorists who renewed before Tuesday avoided the increase at least until their next renewal.

Besides a base rate determined by a vehicle's weight, annual registration includes a variety of other fees for such purposes as emergency medical services, transportation for the disadvantaged, air pollution control, the reflective material on plates and stickers that show a tag's expiration date.

The Department of Highway Safety and Motor Vehicles offers the example of a 2007 Acura four-door weighing 3,586 pounds. The old registration fees, including tax collector service charges that will remain unchanged, totaled $46.80. They'll be increasing to $71.85 -- a difference of $25.05, or 54 percent.

Here are examples of other increases:

• Class E Drivers License goes from $27 to $48
• Identification card goes from $10 to $25
• Original or duplicate titles go from $24 to $70
• Crash reports go from $2 to $10
• Driver history records go from $2.10 to $10
• Delinquent fees go from $1 to $15

As for the need to increase fees, many politicians and bureaucrats are blaming the economy or something -- or someone -- else including their political opponents, the federal stimulus plan and simply the fact many of the fees haven't been raised in more than 20 years.

"Why couldn't they wait until the recession is over?" asked registered nurse Carolina Gonzalez as she waited about an hour to renew the license plate on her Nissan Sentra. "I mean, there's lots of people without jobs. This is the completely wrong time to do this to people."

Motorists are allowed to renew their registration up to three months before it expires and extend the savings by getting a two-year renewal.

"My birthday is nowhere near, but I wanted to get this done now," said Heather Lorndono said. "I think it would be the smartest thing."

Lorndono has lots of company. On Friday, the DMV reported 873,000 transactions. On an average day, the division conducts 330,000 transactions.

Higher Fees Become Political Football

Floridians feeling that pinch are getting plenty of sympathy from Democrats in the Republican-controlled House because, with one exception, they all voted against the fee increases.

"Republican legislators proved again this year that they are not looking out for the middle class and working families," House Democratic Leader Franklin Sands of Weston said in a recent statement. "These fee hikes will negatively impact average Floridians."

The Department of Highway Safety and Motor Vehicles has some answers for those questioning the fee increases. In the Frequently Asked Questions section of the agency's Web site, it says the fees are going up because they were "established in law by the 2009 Florida Legislature as a part of the annual budget development process."

Then it adds: "The fees are not established or controlled by the Department of Highway Safety and Motor Vehicles, the county tax collector, or your local tag agent."

That response didn't sit well with House Majority Leader Adam Hasner, who has joined fellow Republicans in defending the increases.

"That's pass-the-buck leadership," Hasner said.

He also noted the department, overseen by Gov. Charlie Crist and the state Cabinet, failed to point out the Republican governor signed the fee bill into law.

"I'd rather not do it," Crist said. "But I understand we have to have a balanced budget, too, and it's better than raising taxes."

Department spokeswoman Ann Nucatola denied the agency is saying "don't blame us."

"It's very factual," she said. "We do not have control over the fees."

Fee-hike supporters say the charges haven't kept up with inflation over the past two decades. The Legislature had little choice but to turn to fees, Hasner said. He said lawmakers already had cut spending by about $6 billion over the prior two years and faced a threatened loss of federal stimulus dollars if they again chopped education spending - the biggest part of the annual budget.

"No one on the Republican side wanted to raise fees," Hasner said. "We did it kicking and screaming."

Hasner faulted the Democrats for failing to come up with a better idea. Democrats in both chambers, though, had proposed tax increases aimed at businesses and wealthier Floridians. Some even filed bills that would increase the sales tax or repeal certain sales tax exemptions. None got anywhere.

In the Senate, also controlled by the GOP, the fees passed by a unanimous vote including all Democrats. So, is the House's Sands also taking a slap at fellow Democrats in the Senate? Not at all, insisted Mark Hollis, spokesman for House Democrats.

"It's unfortunate not every member of the Legislature was able to vote against taxes on the middle class," Hollis said. "These are in effect taxes."

The new fees are expected to raise more than $800 million during the current budget year and about $1 billion next year. Most of that new money -- about $670 million the first year -- is going directly into the state's general revenue fund that pays for operating schools, prisons, health care and other day-to-day state functions.

Most of the rest -- about $135 million in the first year -- is going into the state's highway safety trust fund, which is losing a nearly equal amount of general revenue.

Supporters of the fee increase say it's only fair to put the bulk of the new money into the general revenue fund, supported mostly by sales tax, because it's been subsidizing highway safety for many years.

Nucatola said few people have complained to the department about the higher fees.

"Most folks understand that we are in a tough financial time, and I think are also very grateful that for in excess of two decades they haven't seen fee increases," she said.

On The Net: Florida Department of Highway Safety and Motor Vehicles Fee Schedule