I came to the US from Canada on a J1 Visa and wanted a California ID for personal reasons. I followed some of the advice in this forum (thank god I found it) and got my ID within 2 weeks of finding this forum. Total wait time has been 1 month and 2 weeks (way better than others). Just like the earlier posts, CPDCCSSM@dmv.ca.gov wouldn't help me either and told me to call in. What I DID learn from the forum is that you have to call the legal presence department several times to get through to a wait list.