Kleberg County ALR Hearing Guide

Fifteen days. That's how long a driver has after a Kleberg County DWI arrest to request a hearing and stop an automatic license suspension, and the countdown starts on the arrest date, not when paperwork catches up. The arresting officer hands over a DIC-25 notice on the spot, which doubles as a temporary permit valid for 40 days. Miss the 15-day window and the suspension takes effect automatically on day 40, no hearing required, no second chance.

The length of the suspension depends on the driving record. A first refusal or failed test triggers 90 days; later refusals or failures can run 180 days to two years. Hearing requests go to the Texas DPS Enforcement and Compliance Service, either online or by fax or mail, and have to include the arrest date, the arresting agency, and the defendant's information. The hearing itself is handled by the State Office of Administrative Hearings, not the local Driver License office, and usually happens virtually or in Corpus Christi rather than Kingsville.

Kleberg County's Driver License office, at 100 W King Ave, runs almost entirely by appointment. Walk-in slots exist but are limited and handed out first-come, first-served early in the morning, and severe winter weather has closed the office outright before. This office issues physical licenses and IDs; it doesn't decide ALR cases and can't speed up a suspension hearing.

Anyone who loses driving privileges but still needs to get to work can petition for an Occupational Driver's License through the Kleberg County Court at Law or District Court, depending on which court has the underlying case. That requires SR-22 proof of financial responsibility, a roughly $54 filing fee at the County Clerk's office plus a separate DPS issuance fee, and a judge's signature specifying exactly which hours and counties the license covers, commonly something like Kleberg and Nueces counties, 8 a.m. to 6 p.m.

Vehicle registration questions, separate from license issues, go to the Tax Assessor-Collector's office at 700 E Kleberg Ave rather than DPS. If an impounded vehicle's title or registration needs sorting out, that's the office to visit, not the Driver License counter.