New Jersey Won’t Let You Smile in Your Driver’s License Photo
Hoping to liven up your driver's license photo with a toothy grin? Not in New Jersey, you don't. In fact, the state's Motor Vehicle Commission has recently begun a crackdown on people who flash their pearly whites while being photographed.
According to the state, they prefer that drivers refrain from smiling because doing so could interfere with facial recognition software, which was implemented in January and is designed to prevent identity theft.
There's no official law preventing smiling, said spokeswoman Elyse Coffey, but the Motor Vehicle Commission asks that drivers don't smile "as if you've just won $5 million in the lottery."
Oh, well, that shouldn't be a problem. With its impossibly long lines and surly workers, there's very little reason to smile at the DMV anyway.