Mo. Rev. Stat. » Chapter 36
Missouri Revised Statutes

Mo. Rev. Stat. § 36.020 (2026)

Definitions

✓ current as of May 2026
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  36.020.  Definitions. — Unless the context clearly requires otherwise, the following terms mean:

  (1)  "Agency", "state agency" or "agency of the state", each department, board, commission or office of the state except for offices of the elected officials, the general assembly, the judiciary and academic institutions;

  (2)  "Appointing authority", an officer or agency subject to this chapter having power to make appointments;

  (3)  "Broad classification band", a grouping of positions with similar levels of responsibility or expertise;

  (4)  "Class", "class of positions", or "job class", a group of positions subject to this chapter sufficiently alike in duties, authority and responsibilities to justify the same qualifications and the same schedule of pay to all positions in the group;

  (5)  "Director", the director of the division of personnel of the office of administration;

  (6)  "Disabled veteran", a veteran who has served on active duty in the Armed Forces at any time who receives compensation as a result of a service-connected disability claim allowed by the federal agency responsible for the administration of veteran's affairs, or who receives disability retirement or disability pension benefits from a federal agency as a result of such a disability or a National Guard veteran who was permanently disabled as a result of active service to the state at the call of the governor;

  (7)  "Division of service" or "division", a state department or any division or branch of the state, or any agency of the state government, all the positions and employees in which are under the same appointing authority;

  (8)  "Eleemosynary or penal institutions", an institution within state government holding, housing, or caring for inmates, patients, veterans, juveniles, or other individuals entrusted to or assigned to the state where it is anticipated that such individuals will be in residence for longer than one day.  Eleemosynary or penal institutions shall not include elementary, secondary, or higher education institutions operated separately or independently from the foregoing institutions;

  (9)  "Eligible", a person whose name is on a register or who has been determined to meet the qualifications for a class or position;

  (10)  "Employee", shall include only those persons employed in excess of thirty-two hours per calendar week, for a duration that could exceed six months, by a state agency and shall not include patients, inmates, or residents in state eleemosynary or penal institutions who work for the state agency operating an eleemosynary or penal institutions;

  (11)  "Examination" or "competitive examination", a means of determining eligibility or fitness for a class or position;

  (12)  "Open competitive examination", a selection process for positions in a particular class, admission to which is not limited to persons employed in positions subject to this chapter pursuant to subsection 1 of section 36.030;

  (13)  "Promotional examination", a selection process for positions in a particular class, admission to which is limited to employees with regular status in positions subject to this chapter pursuant to subsection 1 of section 36.030;

  (14)  "Register of eligibles", a list, which may be restricted by locality, of persons who have been found qualified for appointment to a position subject to this chapter pursuant to subsection 1 of section 36.030;

  (15)  "Regular employee", a person employed in a position described under subdivision (2) of subsection 1 of section 36.030 who has successfully completed a probationary period as provided in section 36.250;

  (16)  "State equal employment opportunity officer", the individual designated by the governor or the commissioner of administration as having responsibility for monitoring the compliance of the state as an employer with applicable equal employment opportunity law and regulation and for leadership in efforts to establish a state workforce which reflects the diversity of Missouri citizens at all levels of employment;

  (17)  "Surviving spouse", the unmarried surviving spouse of a deceased disabled veteran or the unmarried surviving spouse of any person who was killed while on active duty in the Armed Forces of the United States or an unmarried surviving spouse of a National Guard veteran who was killed as a result of active service to the state at the call of the governor;

  (18)  "Veteran", any person who is a citizen of this state who has been separated under honorable conditions from the Armed Forces of the United States who served on active duty during peacetime or wartime for at least six consecutive months, unless released early as a result of a service-connected disability or a reduction in force at the convenience of the government, or any member of a reserve or National Guard component who has satisfactorily completed at least six years of service or who was called or ordered to active duty by the President and participated in any campaign or expedition for which a campaign badge or service medal has been authorized.

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(L. 1945 p. 1157 § 3, A. 1949 S.B. 1018, A.L. 1959 H.B. 111, A.L. 1973 1st Ex. Sess. H.B. 8, A.L. 1979 H.B. 673, A.L. 1995 H.B. 114, A.L. 1996 H.B. 1146, A.L. 2018 S.B. 1007, A.L. 2021 S.B. 120, A.L. 2023 S.B. 111)

Notes of Decisions
Cited in 17 cases (1 in the last 5 years), 1979–2021 · leading case: Andresen v. Bd. of Regents, 58 S.W.3d 581 (Mo. Ct. App. 2001).
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Andresen v. Bd. of Regents, 58 S.W.3d 581 (Mo. Ct. App. 2001). · cites it 10× “[39] § 36.020(1) RSMo Cum.Supp.1996 (emphasis added).”
Brown v. Pers. Advisory Bd. of the State, 879 S.W.2d 581 (Mo. Ct. App. 1994). · cites it 5× “Section 36.020 RSMo defines regular employee as “an employee appointed to a position in accordance with this law after successfully completing a probationary period.”
Hedges v. Dep't of Soc. Servs., 585 S.W.2d 170 (Mo. Ct. App. 1979). · cites it 2× “Section 36.020(6) defines a “probationary employee” as one who is serving a probationary period of employment.”
Sprenger v. Missouri Dep't of Pub. Saf., 248 S.W.3d 626 (Mo. Ct. App. 2008). · cites it 2× “Section 36.020 denotes such a board as a personnel advisory board.”
Anderson v. Pers. Advisory Bd., 586 S.W.2d 738 (Mo. Ct. App. 1979). · cites it 2× “” Section 36.020(1) defines “Appointing authority” as “* * * an officer or agency subject to this law having power to make appointments; * * * Arthur C.”
Mariann Atwell v. James Fitzsimmons, 452 S.W.3d 670 (Mo. Ct. App. 2014). “” § 36.020(2). Atwell, as the Appointing Authority of the Division of Offender Rehabilitation Services, was responsible for oversight of the Division, including determining and issuing employee discipline.”
Div. of Fam. Servs. v. Cade, 939 S.W.2d 546 (Mo. Ct. App. 1997). “§ 36.020(10). Because regular, nonprobationary employees of the state may be discharged only “for cause,” under state law he had a constitutionally protected property interest in his continued employment.”
State ex rel. Donelon v. Div. of Emp. Sec., 971 S.W.2d 869 (Mo. Ct. App. 1998). “§ 36.020(10). “Because regular, non-probationary employees of the state may be discharged only ‘for cause,’ under state law he had a constitutionally protected property interest in his continued employment.”
McKenna v. Pers. Advisory Bd., 702 S.W.2d 548 (Mo. Ct. App. 1985). · cites it 2× “The inordinate amount of testimony over this subject calls to mind the action and testimony of Captain Queeg in "The Caine Mutiny." According to MHC employee policy contained in a memo by Adrienne McKenna, a violation of an administrative rule which does not specify a penalty, i.”
Chapman v. Bd. of Prob. & Parole, 813 S.W.2d 370 (Mo. Ct. App. 1991). · cites it 2× “Chapman was a nonprobation-ary “regular employee” (§ 36.020(10), RSMo 1986) of the Board of Probation and Parole.”
State ex rel. Lohman v. Pers. Advisory Bd., 948 S.W.2d 701 (Mo. Ct. App. 1997). “A "regular employee” is defined in § 36.020 as "an employee appointed to a position in accordance with this law after successfully completing a probationary period.”
P.L.S. ex rel. Shelton v. Koster, 360 S.W.3d 805 (Mo. Ct. App. 2011). “” § 36.020(1). The employees of school districts (and those of other political subdivisions) are thus expressly excluded from the reach of the State Personnel Law (the “Merit System”), which is applicable to employees of “agencies of the state.”
Show all 17 citing cases →
— Mo. Rev. Stat. § 36.020(1) — 6 cases
Andresen v. Bd. of Regents, 58 S.W.3d 581 (Mo. Ct. App. 2001). “[39] § 36.020(1) RSMo Cum.Supp.1996 (emphasis added).”
Anderson v. Pers. Advisory Bd., 586 S.W.2d 738 (Mo. Ct. App. 1979). “” Section 36.020(1) defines “Appointing authority” as “* * * an officer or agency subject to this law having power to make appointments; * * * Arthur C.”
McKenna v. Pers. Advisory Bd., 702 S.W.2d 548 (Mo. Ct. App. 1985). “The inordinate amount of testimony over this subject calls to mind the action and testimony of Captain Queeg in "The Caine Mutiny." According to MHC employee policy contained in a memo by Adrienne McKenna, a violation of an administrative rule which does not specify a penalty, i.”
P.L.S. ex rel. Shelton v. Koster, 360 S.W.3d 805 (Mo. Ct. App. 2011). “” § 36.020(1). The employees of school districts (and those of other political subdivisions) are thus expressly excluded from the reach of the State Personnel Law (the “Merit System”), which is applicable to employees of “agencies of the state.”
Wolf v. Pers. Advisory Bd., 601 S.W.2d 30 (Mo. Ct. App. 1980).
— Mo. Rev. Stat. § 36.020(10) — 4 cases
Div. of Fam. Servs. v. Cade, 939 S.W.2d 546 (Mo. Ct. App. 1997). “§ 36.020(10). Because regular, nonprobationary employees of the state may be discharged only “for cause,” under state law he had a constitutionally protected property interest in his continued employment.”
State ex rel. Donelon v. Div. of Emp. Sec., 971 S.W.2d 869 (Mo. Ct. App. 1998). “§ 36.020(10). “Because regular, non-probationary employees of the state may be discharged only ‘for cause,’ under state law he had a constitutionally protected property interest in his continued employment.”
Chapman v. Bd. of Prob. & Parole, 813 S.W.2d 370 (Mo. Ct. App. 1991). “Chapman was a nonprobation-ary “regular employee” (§ 36.020(10), RSMo 1986) of the Board of Probation and Parole.”
Jones v. W. Missouri Mental Health Ctr., 878 S.W.2d 84 (Mo. Ct. App. 1994).
— Mo. Rev. Stat. § 36.020(2) — 2 cases
Mariann Atwell v. James Fitzsimmons, 452 S.W.3d 670 (Mo. Ct. App. 2014). “” § 36.020(2). Atwell, as the Appointing Authority of the Division of Offender Rehabilitation Services, was responsible for oversight of the Division, including determining and issuing employee discipline.”
Stockham v. Missouri Dep't of Agric., 87 S.W.3d 303 (Mo. Ct. App. 2002).
— Mo. Rev. Stat. § 36.020(6) — 1 case
Hedges v. Dep't of Soc. Servs., 585 S.W.2d 170 (Mo. Ct. App. 1979). “Section 36.020(6) defines a “probationary employee” as one who is serving a probationary period of employment.”
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