Missing Endangered Persons 
Information Clearinghouse Advisory Board

The Florida Department of Law Enforcement, Missing Endangered Persons Information Clearinghouse (MEPICAB) was established in 1996. The purpose of the MEPICAB is to gain an outside perspective from local law enforcement, parents, educators, the business community, and other victim services providers on enhancing the approach to missing person issues. 

The MEPICAB Board members are chosen by FDLE's Commissioner from around the state, to provide balanced representation of the state of Florida. The board members meet quarterly to discuss and implement plans and policies to combat and create an awareness of the large number of adult and children that go missing every year in Florida. Approximately 61,000 missing person incidents were reported to local law enforcement agencies in Florida during the year of 2008. 

The Advisory Board consists of 3 sub-committees: the Recovery Committee, the Prevention Committee and the Florida Missing Children’s Day Committee. Each sub- committee works on various missing persons safety and prevention projects, such as the Missing Children Highway Billboards, the Child Identification Program (ChIP) and the Florida Missing Children's Day ceremony listed below. 

Florida Missing Children’s Day                                                                                                                     
As proclaimed by Resolution of the Florida Legislature, Florida Statute 683.2, the “first ever” Florida Missing Children’s Day was held on Monday, September 13, 1999. Each year parents, children, law enforcement officers and citizens gather to remember Florida's missing children who are still missing and those who will never come home again. The Governor, Lieutenant Governor, and FDLE’s Commissioner are invited as speakers. The objective of this day is to raise awareness of Florida’s currently missing children, to educate the public on child safety and abduction prevention, and to recognize those individuals and law enforcement officers who have made outstanding contributions in the missing children issue. 

Child Identification Program (CHIP)

The ChIP started in 1998, and is a blood-sampling program that gives parents or guardians the option of having their child's blood sample available in an emergency. In the event of your child's disappearance, his or her DNA would be available, from that blood sample, to law enforcement. In addition to providing information in the case of kidnappings or parental abductions, the sample could help with identification in cases of accidents or natural disasters. The blood sample is kept only by the parent and can last up to 100 years.

Florida AMBER Plan

The Florida Department of Law Enforcement (FDLE) in conjunction with the Department of Community Affairs and the Florida Association of Broadcasters, Inc. established the FLORIDA AMBER PLAN, Florida’s emergency missing child alert in 2000. The purpose of the Plan is to broadcast critical information of a missing/abducted child believed to be in danger, in a timely manner, to the general public via radio and television. In August 2002, the State began the expansion of the Florida Amber Plan to include partnerships with the Florida Department of Transportation, Florida Highway Patrol and with the Florida Department of Lottery, which will allow for the usage of road signs and lottery machines.

Florida Highway Billboards

The FDLE MEPIC has partnered with the Florida Outdoor Advertising Association (FOAA) in producing and distributing 10 billboards featuring missing children in Florida. The FDLE MEPIC recently purchased additional 10 billboards that will be posted throughout the state of Florida during the upcoming year. In 2006, FDLE worked with the FOAA to expand the Florida Amber Plan to include digital billboards. Additionally, FOAA has utilized transportation shelters located in the Dade County area for publicizing the disappearance of a child.

Florida Silver Alert Plan

The Florida Chiefs and Sheriffs, Florida Department of Transportation (FDOT), Florida Department of Elder Affairs (DOEA), Department of Safety and Motor Vehicles Florida Highway Patrol (DHSMV/FHP), Florida Department of Law Enforcement (FDLE), and Florida legislators have worked in conjunction with concerned citizens and organizations to develop Florida’s Silver Alert Plan. The Florida Silver Alert is a plan to aid local law enforcement in the rescue or recovery of an elderly person who suffers from irreversible deterioration of intellectual faculties (i.e. dementia, Alzheimer’s) in a timely manner. The Silver Alert is designed to supplement the local law enforcement agency response by broadcasting vehicle information about the missing person to motorists and the general public.