§20920 — Title 34 Navy | U.S. Code

§20920 Public access to sex offender information through the Internet

Title 34 › Subtitle Subtitle II— - Protection of Children and Other Persons › Chapter CHAPTER 209— - CHILD PROTECTION AND SAFETY › Subchapter SUBCHAPTER I— - SEX OFFENDER REGISTRATION AND NOTIFICATION › Part Part A— - Sex Offender Registration and Notification › § 20920

Last updated Apr 6, 2026|Official source

Summary

Jurisdictions must publish on the Internet all registry information about each sex offender in a way the public and other jurisdictions can use. The website must let people search by a single zip code or by a user-set distance and include the search fields needed to work with the Dru Sjodin National Sex Offender Public Website. Jurisdictions must take part in that national site as the Attorney General requires. Websites must hide victims’ identities, offenders’ Social Security numbers, arrests that did not lead to conviction, and any other items the Attorney General says to withhold. They may also hide some Tier I offender info (if not a minor-related offense), employer and school names, and other Attorney General-approved items. The site must link to safety and education resources, show how to ask for corrections, and warn that using the information to harm, harass, or commit crimes can lead to civil or criminal penalties.

Title 34, §20920

Navy — Source: USLM XML via OLRC

(a)Except as provided in this section, each jurisdiction shall make available on the Internet, in a manner that is readily accessible to all jurisdictions and to the public, all information about each sex offender in the registry. The jurisdiction shall maintain the Internet site in a manner that will permit the public to obtain relevant information for each sex offender by a single query for any given zip code or geographic radius set by the user. The jurisdiction shall also include in the design of its Internet site all field search capabilities needed for full participation in the Dru Sjodin National Sex Offender Public Website and shall participate in that website as provided by the Attorney General.

(b)A jurisdiction shall exempt from disclosure—

(1)the identity of any victim of a sex offense;

(2)the Social Security number of the sex offender;

(3)any reference to arrests of the sex offender that did not result in conviction; and

(4)any other information exempted from disclosure by the Attorney General.

(c)A jurisdiction may exempt from disclosure—

(1)any information about a tier I sex offender convicted of an offense other than a specified offense against a minor;

(2)the name of an employer of the sex offender;

(3)the name of an educational institution where the sex offender is a student; and

(4)any other information exempted from disclosure by the Attorney General.

(d)The site shall include, to the extent practicable, links to sex offender safety and education resources.

(e)The site shall include instructions on how to seek correction of information that an individual contends is erroneous.

(f)The site shall include a warning that information on the site should not be used to unlawfully injure, harass, or commit a crime against any individual named in the registry or residing or working at any reported address. The warning shall note that any such action could result in civil or criminal penalties.

Notes & Related Subsidiaries

Editorial Notes

References in Text

The Dru Sjodin National Sex Offender Public Website, referred to in subsec. (a), is located at https://www.nsopw.gov. Codification Section was formerly classified to section 16918 of Title 42, The Public Health and Welfare, prior to editorial reclassification and renumbering as this section.