> ## Documentation Index
> Fetch the complete documentation index at: https://docs.pr.snh-ai.com/llms.txt
> Use this file to discover all available pages before exploring further.

# Public Records

The Public Records service automates criminal record evaluation for background screening. Organizations submit screening data and candidate information, and receive FCRA-compliant reportability decisions — `REPORTABLE`, `NOT_REPORTABLE`, or `MANUAL_REVIEW` — with full compliance rule citations, identity match scores, and automated queue routing.

Decisions are returned synchronously. No polling or callbacks required.

## How It Works

The service processes each request through three stages:

1. **XML Transformation** — Raw screening XML is parsed into structured criminal record data.
2. **Identity Matching** — The candidate is compared against each record subject using name, date of birth, SSN, and address, producing a weighted match score.
3. **Compliance Evaluation** — FCRA and 50-state rules are applied at the charge level. Each charge receives a reportability decision and is routed to the appropriate queue (`Automation`, `Auditor`, or `Insufficient Data`).

All three stages run behind a single `/evaluate` endpoint.

## Common Use Cases

* **Automated background screening** — Evaluate criminal records against federal and state compliance rules without manual lookups.
* **Employment verification workflows** — Determine whether charges are reportable before including them in a background report.
* **Queue-based researcher routing** — Automatically route charges that require human review to auditors, while clearing compliant records end-to-end.
* **Resubmission after correction** — Re-evaluate a previously processed record with corrected data using the JSON resubmission path.

## How to Integrate

<Steps>
  <Step title="Set Up Your Account">
    Create your organization profile and obtain API credentials. See [Account Setup](/account-setup).
  </Step>

  <Step title="Authenticate">
    Exchange your API key for a JWT token. See [Authentication](/authentication).
  </Step>

  <Step title="Evaluate Records">
    Submit a criminal record for compliance evaluation. See [Quickstart](/quickstart) for a complete walkthrough.
  </Step>

  <Step title="Handle Errors">
    Implement retry logic and failure handling. See [Error Handling](/error-handling).
  </Step>
</Steps>

## Need Help?

<snippet file="snippets/support.mdx" />