The Department of Public Safety of the State of Texas, commonly known as the Texas Department of Public Safety (DPS), is a department of the state government of Texas. The DPS is responsible for statewide law enforcement and driver license administration. The Public Safety Commission oversees the DPS. However, under state law, the Governor of Texas may assume command of the department during a public disaster, riot, insurrection, formation of a dangerous resistance to enforcement of law, or to perform his constitutional duty to enforce law. The commission's five members are appointed by the governor and confirmed by the Texas Senate, to serve without pay for staggered, six-year terms. The commission formulates plans and policies for enforcing criminal, traffic and safety laws, preventing and detecting crime, apprehending law violators, and educating citizens about laws and public safety.
In the United States, a department of public safety is a state or local government agency which often has a broad portfolio of responsibilities, which may include some or all of the following:
The Alaska State Troopers, officially the Division of Alaska State Troopers (AST), is the state police agency of the U.S. state of Alaska. It is a division of the Alaska Department of Public Safety (DPS). The AST is a full-service law enforcement agency which handles both traffic and criminal law enforcement. The AST is also involved in apprehending fugitives as part of the Alaska Fugitive Task Force, an inter-agency collaborative of Alaska police departments that cooperates with police agencies throughout the United States, and less commonly with Interpol in apprehending wanted men and women. Unlike many lower-48 states, the AST also serves as Alaska’s primary environmental law enforcement agency; troopers assigned to the AST’s Division of Alaska Wildlife Troopers are known as “Alaska Wildlife Troopers” and primarily serve as game wardens, although they retain the same powers as other Alaskan state troopers.
The Arizona Department of Public Safety (AZDPS) is a state-level law enforcement agency with a primary function of patrolling and enforcing state laws on Arizona highways. Their headquarters are in Phoenix.
The Hawaii Department of Public Safety is a department within the executive branch of the government of the U.S. state of Hawaii. It is headquartered in the 919 Ala Moana Boulevard building in Honolulu, Hawaii. The Department of Public Safety is made up of three divisions: Administration, Corrections, and Law Enforcement.
The Arkansas State Police is a state police division of the Arkansas Department of Public Safety and the "premier" law enforcement agency in the State of Arkansas. The Arkansas State Police is responsible for enforcing motor vehicle laws, traffic laws, and criminal laws. The Arkansas State Police serves as an assisting agency to local law enforcement agencies within the State of Arkansas and has statewide authority to conduct law enforcement activities, criminal investigations, and crimes against children investigations.
The Rhode Island Department of Transportation (RIDOT) is a Rhode Island state government agency charged with design, construction, maintenance and inspection of a wide range of transportation infrastructure. These include 3,300 lane miles of state roads and highways, 1,162 bridges, 777 traffic signals, and six rail stations. Additionally, RIDOT has constructed a 50-mile (80 km) network of off-road bike paths and signed more than 90 miles (140 km) of on-road bike routes across the state. Its headquarters are located in Providence.
The Alabama Department of Public Safety is the uniform section of the Alabama Law Enforcement Agency, serving the U.S. state of Alabama. It is made up of three divisions: Highway Patrol Division, Marine Patrol Division, and Drivers' License Division.
The Department of Public Safety of the State of Missouri, commonly known as the Missouri Department of Public Safety (DPS), is a department of the state government of Missouri.
The Rhode Island Department of Education (RIDE) is a state agency in Rhode Island that oversees the elementary and secondary education system from pre-Kindergarten through high school. It is headquartered in Providence. RIDE works closely with the Rhode Island Office of the Postsecondary Commissioner (RIOPC), the agency charged with overseeing higher education. Together, RIDE and RIOPC aim to provide an aligned, cohesive, and comprehensive education for all students.
In the United States, the state police is a police body unique to each U.S. state, having statewide authority to conduct law enforcement activities and criminal investigations. In general, state police officers or highway patrol officers, known as state troopers, perform functions that do not fall within the jurisdiction of the county sheriff, such as enforcing traffic laws on state highways and interstate expressways, overseeing the security of the state capitol complex, protecting the governor, training new officers for local police forces too small to operate an academy and providing technological and scientific services. They support local police and help to coordinate multi-jurisdictional task force activity in serious or complicated cases in those states that grant full police powers statewide.
The United States police-rank model is generally quasi-military in structure. A uniform system of insignia based on that of the US Army and Marine Corps is used to help identify an officer's seniority.
The Rhode Island Department of Health is a state government agency located in Providence, Rhode Island. The interim Director of the Department of Health is James McDonald, who succeeded Nicole Alexander-Scott in January 2022.
The Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands Department of Public Safety is a law enforcement agency and firefighting agency of the Northern Mariana Islands. It is one of the CNMI executive agencies, and as of 2015 its commissioner is Robert A. Guerrero.
Kerry Pettingill is a retired American police officer in the state of Oklahoma. Pettingill joined the Oklahoma Highway Patrol and served as its 25th Chief from early 2011 until late 2013 when he retired during the term of Governor of Oklahoma Mary Fallin. Prior to his service as Chief, Pettingill served as the Director of the Oklahoma Office of Homeland Security under Governor Brad Henry from 2004 to 2011.
The Rhode Island Department of Administration, RIDOA, is a department level agency of the Government of Rhode Island.
Brendan Doherty is a former Rhode Island State Police Superintendent and the 2012 Republican nominee for Rhode Island's 1st congressional district. Doherty was employed at Blue Cross Blue Shield of Rhode Island as the Director of the Special Investigations Unit identifying healthcare fraud from 2013 until 2019. Doherty is currently the owner and operator of the Doherty Group, a private investigations and security consulting firm based out of Providence, Rhode Island.
Robert E. Craven, Sr. is an American politician and a Democrat in the Rhode Island House of Representatives representing District 32 since January 1, 2013. He serves as Chairman of the House Municipal Government Committee and a member of the House Judiciary Committee. Craven also serves on the R.I. Governor's Justice Reinvestment Working Group.
The Rhode Island Department of Revenue (RIDOR) is a state agency of Rhode Island responsible for collection of taxes and distribution of state revenue, as well as administration of state laws governing driver licensing, and motor vehicle sale and registration. The current Director of the Department of Revenue is Guillermo Tello, appointed by Governor Dan McKee on May 4, 2021.
