Pontiac Grand am key won't turn

Trying to replace tumbler. Being told that there is a safety feature and the dealership has to fix it. It's a '97, anyone know if this is true? Any way around it, really don't want to pay that much, but it's my husbands car and the best on gas. He has to travel 30 miles one way to get to work. Is there anyway to fix it on our own?

If this is in the column and you can't rotate the key, then it would be a good idea to get a manual......it will show you where you have to drill a hole in the PassLock module....