The Perryville Police Department is among 137 Missouri cities recognized with a Blue Shield designation by the Missouri Department of Public Safety under Gov. Mike Kehoe’s new public safety initiative.
Launched in January, the Missouri Blue Shield Program honors communities that make significant efforts to reduce crime, strengthen law enforcement collaboration and build community partnerships.
Eligibility requires local governments to adopt anti-crime resolutions, invest in public safety, participate in regional task forces, and comply with state crime reporting requirements. Communities with the designation must submit annual reports to remain in the program.
The status also provides access to state grant funding. The Fiscal Year 2026 budget includes $10 million in Blue Shield grants to be distributed equally among participating jurisdictions. The funds may be used for law enforcement training, equipment and technology such as body cameras, ballistic vests, surveillance systems and crime analytics software.
Perryville is one of 201 jurisdictions statewide — including 60 counties, 137 cities and four towns — to achieve the designation.
“One of the priorities of Governor Kehoe’s administration was law enforcement,” said Brent Buerck, Perryville city administrator. “Among his first actions in office was to create the Blue Shield program. This highlights how important it is to his administration. We share his priorities and I’m very proud that both our police department and sheriff’s department has been recognized as a Blue Shield department.”
For more information on the Blue Shield Program, visit www.dps.mo.gov.
