First off - you did well in all your encounters. Nothing that follows should be considered as negative criticism - I'm just sharing some observations and viewpoints.
Even if he noticed your safely holstered 1911 as soon as you got out of your car, this is the way it should be. Unless yours is a very pretty one, so long as you are not doing anything to endanger yourself or others "there's nothing to see here, folks. Move along."
Comments about his question later. Just an observation that he was there to enforce law and policy yet was lacking in basic knowledge of the very laws he was supposed to enforce. ::head-desk::
Alarm bells ought to be going off here. Any rent-a-cop (or real cop for that matter) who feels the burning desire to "stand with me" is making a clear statement that they are expecting trouble and believe I will be the cause of it. He had a whole office to protect and he chose to monitor possibly the most law-abiding person there?
DANGER, WILL ROBINSON! DANGER! WTF is he doing telling the employee you are armed? That is a great way to induce fear/panic when there was no provocation on your part. No matter how "matter-of-fact" or conversational his tone when saying that, he has no business warning (yes, that's what he was doing) her that you were armed - unless he felt a need to put her on alert.
This, like the question about how many rounds you carried, is not only intrusive and unwarranted, but indicates a distrust based on nothing more than the mere presence of the handgun - in other words, he is focusing on the object instead of the behavior.
Will you please send a FOIA request to the DMV office manager to get a copy of the written policy or post order regarding that? If nothing else it is discrimination against OCers - I'm pretty sure there are folks who CC to the DMV but apparently there is no requirement that management be notified about te presence of their handguns.
At first I thought he had been inquiring about how many rounds your 1911 held in the magazine. Some are 7+1, some are 8+1, and I've seen 10+1. This "knowing when I woud be out" is another indication of how much he distrusts someone who has exhibited no unlawful or otherwise inappropriate behavior. The focus is on the object, not on what the person is doing. I truely fear such people because they are more likely to do something in knee-jerk response to the mere presence of the object.
Training for rent-a-cops (full disclosure: I was one for over 5 years) varies widely, although most get little beyond the DCJS-mandated necessary to qualify for certification. Post orders are usually in a notebook somewhere and little if any training is provided beyond "read this and do what it says". Most of the "why" behind what they do is suggestions or requests from the head person at the site - and that usually violates the terms of the contract. But if you annoy the customer you are likely to either be reassigned to a less-desirable post/site or terminated.
There is an on-going debate as to just what powers of arrest (other than citizen's arrest) security officers have. They are also not allowed to do anything (like use handcuffs or OC) they are not certified for and many of them do not seek certification unless their employer pays for it. As for why DMV uses rent-a-cops instead of sworn officers? Follow the money! Plus, do you really want to expand the number of sworn officers DMV already has? Next thing you know they will be wanting their own SWAT team, just like the Department of Education.:uhoh:
BTW, all this is not paranoia. It's just experience and the ability to recognize how rights can be bumped by subtle means as opposed to being trampled by obvious JBT behavior. I do not want to give them the first inch and I have no desire to store camels in my tent.
stay safe.