Mo. Rev. Stat. § 559.609: Qualifications and factors considered by judges in approving private entities to serve as probation offices.

The associate circuit or municipal judges approving the private entity to function as a probation office shall base their decision on factors such as length of time in the probation field, experience in supervising various types of offenders, the financial ability to operate a probation office in the jurisdiction, and other factors as the judges deem necessary and relevant.