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POST to study whether agencies can reuse recent officer background investigations at Cal Chiefs' request
Summary
The Commission on Peace Officer Standards and Training agreed to study a California Police Chiefs Association proposal to allow hiring agencies to use or update background investigations conducted by other agencies in limited circumstances, directing staff to return with recommendations by March.
The Commission on Peace Officer Standards and Training on Nov. 1 agreed to study whether hiring agencies should be permitted to use or update background-investigation files completed by other agencies.
The proposal was presented as a request from Foster City Police Chief Tracy Avelar and the California Police Chiefs Association. Melanie Singley, Office of Strategic Communication and Research, explained POST’s current rule, telling commissioners: "Currently, Commission Regulation 1953 . . . provides limited exceptions to allow a hiring agency to use a peace officer candidate's previous completed background investigation."
Commissioners and staff framed the issue around recruitment and the cost of repeating background investigations, especially for smaller agencies that may share contractors. Executive Director Manny Alvarez described the practical problem: "There are individuals that have just gone through a background investigation . . . why can't they incorporate, or update, take that background if it's available to them and update the background?" Commissioner Ingrid Braun said she supported studying the change but emphasized that a receiving agency should still be able to insist on a full new background: "I would not substitute somebody else's background for our own."
POST staff and advisory committee members had noted existing narrow exceptions in Regulation 1953 that allow transfer only in limited circumstances — most commonly when an officer returns to the same agency or, very narrowly, for interim police chiefs. Singley and staff recapped the interim-chief exception’s conditions: the initial investigation must have been completed for an interim chief by a POST-participating agency, the individual must have served as an interim chief within the last 24 months, and the initial background investigation must be no more than five years old and have been determined compliant by POST.
Commissioners said they were split between preserving full local control over hiring and recognizing a practical need to reduce duplicative work. Commissioner Gordon and others urged safeguards to ensure any transferred file meets current background standards and to avoid allowing weak or automated-only investigations to substitute for thorough checks.
Commissioner Braun moved that POST staff pursue a study of the proposal and return with options; commissioners directed staff to consult with Cal Chiefs, the sheriffs’ association and other stakeholders and to try to report back by March 2025. The motion passed by voice/consent.
POST staff told commissioners the study will consider time frames for acceptability of prior files, the scope of required updates, and how to preserve employers’ discretion to require full investigations.
Why this matters: Background investigations are a primary safeguard in hiring sworn officers. Allowing limited reuse or formal updates of recent, compliant investigations could speed hiring and reduce costs for small agencies; doing so without clear standards risks undercutting local vetting or exposing agencies to liability.
What’s next: Staff will convene stakeholders and return with recommended language and an implementation timeline for the commission to consider at a future meeting, targeted for March 2025.
