Minnesota Department of Public Safety

What Minnesota Department of Public Safety does

The Minnesota Department of Public Safety (DPS) is a cabinet-level state government agency of the State of Minnesota, headquartered at 445 Minnesota Street in St. Paul, and operating under the authority of the Minnesota Commissioner of Public Safety. The agency delivers public safety services through eleven divisions: Driver and Vehicle Services (DVS), Bureau of Criminal Apprehension (BCA), Minnesota State Patrol, State Fire Marshal, Homeland Security and Emergency Management (HSEM), Emergency Communication Networks (ECN), Alcohol and Gambling Enforcement, Office of Justice Programs, Office of Pipeline Safety, and Office of Traffic Safety. These divisions collectively handle driver licensing, vehicle registration and titling, criminal investigation and forensic analysis, highway patrol, fire safety, emergency communications, and traffic safety programs for the state's residents and 87+ partner law enforcement agencies.

The agency's core technology stack consists of government information systems supporting driver and vehicle services, criminal justice data management, and emergency communications infrastructure. Notable platforms include the e-Services self-service portal, the IGX Grants Management System (replacing the legacy E-Grants platform), the BCA Data Dashboard, the Minnesota Crime Data Explorer, the Minnesota Drug Crimes and Overdose Dashboard, License Plate Reader agency reporting, Unmanned Aerial Vehicle deployment reporting, and the National Insurance Crime Bureau's Online Fraud Reporting System integration. DPS maintains several public registries — including the Predatory Offender Registry (19,821 active registrants), the Methamphetamine Offender Registry, and the Minnesota Gang File — and integrates with the FBI's National Crime Information Center (NCIC) and the U.S. Department of Justice-sponsored National Motor Vehicle Title Information System (NMVTIS). The agency is also statutorily bound to the State of Minnesota Digital Accessibility Standard (WCAG 2.1 plus Section 508).

DPS's business model is that of a tax-and-fee-funded government agency, not a commercial enterprise. It is funded by Minnesota legislative appropriations, user fees (vehicle registration plate fees of $13.50-$15.50, title filing fees of $12 plus surcharges, registration renewal filing fees of $8), transaction-based taxes (a 6.875% vehicle sales tax, $10-$150 in-lieu taxes for older or collector vehicles), the county-set wheelage tax ($10-$20), and surcharges such as the $0.50 per vehicle per six-months Automobile Theft Prevention surcharge collected by insurance carriers. Services are delivered online via the e-Services portal, by mail, through deputy registrar offices statewide, and at nine fixed vehicle inspection sites across Greater Minnesota. The customer base is essentially the entire Minnesota resident population plus federal, state, county, and municipal law enforcement partners.

Name

Minnesota Department of Public Safety

Legal name

Minnesota Department of Public Safety

Website

https://dps.mn.gov

Company type

Private

Founded year

1969

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

1,001–5,000 employees

Short description

The Minnesota Department of Public Safety is a state government agency that delivers driver licensing, vehicle registration, criminal investigation, highway patrol, fire safety, and emergency management services to Minnesota residents and partner law enforcement agencies through eleven operating divisions.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Public Safety and Government Services

NAICS

Justice, Public Order, and Safety Activities (922), Police Protection (922120), Fire Protection (92216)

SIC

Transportation Services (4700), Services-Automotive Repair, Services & Parking (7500)

akta.pro primary industry

State/Provincial Public Safety & Emergency Management (Police, Fire, EMS Oversight) (BPAIABAG)

akta.pro secondary industries

Police Services (Patrol, Response & Community Policing) (BPAIAGAA), Community Safety Administration (Fire/EMS, Emergency Management) (BPAIACAL)

Keywords

• Public safety services
• Driver vehicle services
• Criminal investigations
• Emergency management
• Law enforcement data

Headquarters

HQ city

Minnesota City

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices11 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2B and B2C

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Technology or R&D, Infrastructure, Others

Pricing tiers

Distribution channels4 records

Marketing channels5 records

Core offering

The Minnesota Department of Public Safety is the State of Minnesota's executive-branch agency delivering public safety services through 11 divisions. Its core offerings include Driver and Vehicle Services (driver licensing, vehicle registration, titles, and vehicle inspections) and the Bureau of Criminal Apprehension (criminal investigations, forensic analysis, criminal history records, offender registries, and law enforcement data dashboards). Supporting services cover state patrol, fire marshal, emergency communications, homeland security and emergency management, pipeline safety, traffic safety, alcohol and gambling enforcement, and justice programs.

Product overview

The Minnesota Department of Public Safety is a state government agency operating multiple divisions that provide public safety services across the state. The core offerings include Driver and Vehicle Services (DVS), which manages driver licensing, vehicle registration, titles, and inspections, and the Bureau of Criminal Apprehension (BCA), which provides criminal investigation services, maintains crime-related registries (Predatory Offender Registry, Methamphetamine Offender Registry), and operates various data dashboards. Key sub-products include the Automobile Theft Prevention Program, Minnesota Financial Crimes Task Force, Firearms Permit to Carry System, and the IGX Grants Management System. The agency also provides specialized reporting systems for insurance fraud, state program fraud, and wage theft investigations, along with multiple public data portals including the Minnesota Crime Data Explorer and Drug Crimes Dashboard. Services are delivered through both digital platforms (online renewal, e-Services scheduling) and physical locations (deputy registrar offices, vehicle inspection sites).

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Driver and Vehicle Services (DVS)

Quantifiable outcome

• Processes vehicle registrations and driver licenses for millions of Minnesota residents annually
• +2 more outcomes

Segments2 records

Ideal customer profiles2 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Integration3 records

Partnerships

Five partnerships are on record, tiered core and minor.

• Minnesota Financial Crimes Task Force (MNFCTF) Affiliate AgenciescoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerMultijurisdictional statewide effort comprised of federal, state and local law enforcement agencies, prosecutors' offices, retail businesses, financial institutions and not-for-profit organizations working together on financial crimes investigations including identity theft. Personnel work from local jurisdictions and are called upon as needed for financial crimes cases.
• County Attorney's OfficescoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerCounty attorney's offices receive Automobile Theft Prevention Grant funds to support prosecution of auto theft cases and coordination with law enforcement on auto theft prevention efforts.
• Law Enforcement Agencies (Auto Theft Prevention)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerLaw enforcement agencies receive Automobile Theft Prevention Grant funds for auto theft education, investigation, and prosecution efforts. Priority given to Greater Minnesota and areas where automobile theft is most problematic.
• Neighborhood and Community OrganizationsminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerCommunity organizations committed to combating auto theft receive grant funds through the Automobile Theft Prevention Grant Program for local prevention projects.
• Automobile Insurance CarrierscoreOthersAutomobile insurance carriers providing comprehensive coverage in Minnesota are required to collect and remit a 50-cent surcharge per vehicle for every six months of coverage, which funds the Automobile Theft Prevention Program.

Scale indicators3 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Emerging players

• Ohio Bureau of Criminal Investigation: State-level criminal investigative unit housed within the Ohio Attorney General's office; the closest single-division analog to Minnesota's Bureau of Criminal Apprehension (BCA).

Broad incumbents

• Illinois State Police: Statewide law enforcement and public-safety agency combining patrol, criminal investigation, forensic services, and traffic safety — a structural peer to the State Patrol/BCA halves of Minnesota DPS.
• California Highway Patrol (CHP): California's statewide law enforcement and traffic safety agency; directly comparable to Minnesota State Patrol and DPS's traffic-safety and public-safety coordination role, though operating at substantially larger scale.
• Michigan State Police: Multi-functional state police agency with patrol, criminal investigation, forensic labs, and motor-vehicle support functions, paralleling multiple DPS divisions in one organization.
• New York State Police: Full-service state police agency providing patrol, criminal investigation, and specialized support; comparable to the State Patrol and BCA components of Minnesota DPS.
• Pennsylvania State Police: State-level law enforcement agency with parallel duties to Minnesota State Patrol and BCA, including criminal investigation support and statewide policing.

Direct peers

• Texas Department of Public Safety: The closest functional analog — a single state agency combining driver licensing, vehicle services, state police, criminal investigation, and emergency management, much like Minnesota DPS's 11-division structure.
• Florida Highway Safety and Motor Vehicles (FLHSMV): State agency dedicated to driver licensing, vehicle registration, and highway safety — directly comparable to Minnesota's Driver and Vehicle Services (DVS) division in scope and mission.

Regional players

• Washington State Patrol: State patrol and commercial-vehicle enforcement agency in a neighboring region, comparable in mission to Minnesota State Patrol and the Office of Traffic Safety.
• Wisconsin Department of Justice (Division of Law Enforcement Services): Neighboring state agency that operates the Wisconsin State Crime Laboratory and investigative bureaus — directly comparable to Minnesota's BCA in function and regional scope.

Market position

Strengths4 records

Weaknesses4 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/minnesota-department-of-public-safety

Compliance2 records

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Subsidiaries10 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds1 record

Investors1 record

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments2 records

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Minnesota Department of Public Safety