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Department of Public Safety

About the Department

The New Mexico Department of Public Safety (DPS) promotes a safe and secure environment for the State of New Mexico through intelligently led policing practices, vital scientific and technical support, current and relevant training, and innovative leadership. DPS oversees the New Mexico State Police, the Law Enforcement Records Bureau, the Forensic Laboratory, the Law Enforcement Academy, and the Identification Bureau.

Latest News

Need IT help?: New IT Help Center at New Mexico Department of Public Safety will improve efficiencies, provide stronger customer service to employees, partners
Aug 7, 2026
When Matt Zwager arrived at the New Mexico Department of Public Safety in August 2023 as the IT Service Management Bureau Chief, he quickly recognized a growing problem. The agency’s Help Desk - responsible for supporting roughly 1,300 employees (700 of which are New...
‘National Night Out’ held in Santa Fe: Event strengthens ties between law enforcement and the community
Aug 5, 2026
SANTA FE — The New Mexico Department of Public Safety in collaboration with the Santa Fe Police Department held National Night Out, on Tuesday, August 4 at Franklin Miles Park. The event raised awareness about crime and drug prevention while encouraging positive...
Modernizing New Mexico’s Criminal Justice Information Systems
Jul 30, 2026
Most New Mexicans will never see the technology systems that power criminal history records, fingerprint identification, background checks and law enforcement information sharing. Yet, every day those systems influence everything from traffic stops and police...

Most Popular Services

Fingerprints and Background Checks
Public Safety • Department of Public Safety
New Mexico Applicant Fingerprint Processing (NMAPS) is the applicant background check solution that is totally electronic and provides New Mexico residents the means to complete their required federal and state background checks quickly and conveniently. Your first point of contact to check on the status or any delay of your application should be the agency you initially submitted your application and prints to. Once prints are submitted to DPS electronically your agency will receive a response from DPS within 24-48 hours and from the FBI within 48-72 hours.
Concealed Carry Application
Public Safety • Department of Public Safety
Link below to the concealed carry application.
Law Enforcement Academy
Public Safety • Department of Public Safety
The New Mexico Law Enforcement Academy strives to serve the State of New Mexico with ideas and innovations shaped more by experience and the rule of law than by emotion, more by best practices than by politics, and more by intellect than by impulse. In doing so, we will responsibly serve the public safety community, New Mexico Law Enforcement Academy Board and citizens of the state of New Mexico by providing exceptional training opportunities while enforcing the statutory and administrative laws and responsibilities entrusted to the agency, by demonstrating the character & competence demanded of the profession in the 21st century.
New Mexico State Police Application Process
Public Safety • Department of Public Safety
To apply for a career with the New Mexico State Police, please visit the application website and follow the steps outlined.
Missing Person Clearinghouse
Public Safety • Department of Public Safety
The Missing Persons Clearinghouse is responsible for posting missing persons to the public website, and releasing alerts to the media. The Clearinghouse also keeps in contact with the police agencies and the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children to keep all information current. As a Clearinghouse we release Amber Alerts and Silver Alerts to the media. A person can be reported missing at any time when their whereabouts are unknown and are believed to be in danger, regardless of age.