Missouri Public Records

State Level Information

Seven years after the Freedom of Information Act was passed by Congress in response to Watergate, Missouri responded with their version of the Sunshine Law when, in 1973, the law was signed into the state's Constitution as RSMO Chapter 610. This made Missouri one of the first to support open records.

Public records are specifically spoken to in Sections 610.10, 610.023, 610.024, 610.026 of the Sunshine Law which states that public records include records that are created or maintained by private contractors under agreements with public governing bodies or on behalf of the same.

A reasonable fee may be charged for both the search for and the replication of public records, and the custodian of a record may deny a request but must detail in writing why the denial took place and back it up with the statute that allows for the denial.

Missouri Department of Public Safety
State of Missouri Secretary of State
Missouri Department of Agriculture
State of Missouri Department of Real Estate
Missouri Department of Revenue
Missouri Department of Transportation
Missouri State Veterinary Medical Examining Board

Court Record Resources

In the state of Missouri, the State Highway Patrol Criminal Records and Identification Division is the party responsible for compiling, maintaining and disseminating criminal history records as well as criminal incident and arrest reports. This information is compiled after being collected by criminal justice agencies throughout the state on individual arrest, detention, indictment and other formal criminal charges as well as the disposition that arises from the same.

Criminal history records are not only used by law enforcement but are also available for non-criminal requests as well as either a name-based or a fingerprint-based search.

Missouri Judicial Branch
Missouri Criminal Justice Commission
Missouri State Police
Missouri Department of Corrections
Missouri Office of Administrative Hearings

Vital Records Facts

Missouri Department of Health and Senior Services
Missouri State Archives