Big difference between state/local and federal jobs. You really do have to try to get fired/laid off from a federal job. State job security I'm sure varies from one state to another.
That's just wrong. I had a friend who was a teacher, and she was able to take a full year off with pay by using accumulated sick and personal time she'd never used. Try that in private industry.
In my state it's not necessary to go to the DMV to register most vehicles, it can all be done at town hall (for a relatively small "convenience" fee). Commercial vehicles, antique cars, etc. do need to be done at the DMV for the initial registration, renewals can be done by the town.
No way out of going to the DMV when license renewal time comes though. Last time I waited in line for almost an hour, and they had all the windows open. Line stretched out the door.
Can't blame it all on the employees though, they did seem to be working as fast as possible. Lots of people renewing licenses/transferring from another state, etc. and didn't have all their paperwork. The state was also transitioning to "enhanced" licenses, which involved additional paperwork that needed verifying.