WHEREAS, the growth in public awareness and concern about safety and security matters has placed demands on public law enforcement agencies to meet the escalating number of calls for service; and

WHEREAS, the fiscal resources of those public law enforcement agencies have not increased commensurately with the need for additional service; and

WHEREAS, the growth of the contract and proprietary security services industry, collectively, to more than one million private security officers has been, in part, a response to the increased calls for services to supplement, but not replace, those performed by law enforcement officers; and

WHEREAS, although 40 states currently regulate individuals who provide private security officer services, the minimum statutory qualifications for private security officers vary widely among those 40 states, and in the remaining states, there are no statewide qualifications at all as prerequisites for such employment; and

WHEREAS, the role of uniformed private security officers in observing and reporting incidents that may require law enforcement response often makes them a critical preliminary public safety link between private citizens and law enforcement; and

WHEREAS, such a connecting role places private security officers in positions that dictate the need for background screening of applicants to help assure that candidates possess the honesty, integrity and ability to respond appropriately in situations requiring the effective use of interpersonal communication and other incident-management skills; and

WHEREAS, achieving uniform minimum qualifications for private security officers can most effectively and realistically be accomplished through state legislation to regulate those individuals employed as private security officers; and

WHEREAS, because private employers are denied access to criminal history records in the absence of legislative authorization, state regulatory criteria for private security officers should include requirements for criminal records checks both in the state in which application is made and because of the movement of citizens throughout the country, records checks should also be made in the in the federal system maintained by the Federal Bureau of Investigation; and

WHEREAS, consistent background screening practices for all private security officers in compliance with state regulatory requirements will contribute significantly to greater professionalism among their ranks, thereby helping to dispel negative stereotyping of private security officers among law enforcement and the public, and fostering greater willingness from law enforcement to cooperate and work more closely with private security officers for the public's safety; and

WHEREAS, Guidelines for Private Security Officers have been published by the IACP Private Sector Liaison Committee through the collaborative efforts of representatives from contract and proprietary private security users and providers, federal state and local law enforcement and state security regulators, recommending basic qualifications for incorporation into state regulatory programs; and

WHEREAS, these recommendations collectively constitute a "check-list" of the components generally regarded as appropriate minimum qualifications for private security licensing or registration, but may be adapted or otherwise modified to meet specific concerns of individual state legislatures and administrators; and

WHEREAS, the dissemination of these recommendations with the endorsement of the International Association of Chiefs of Police and other contributing organizations can provide an objective model for state legislation and can promote greater consistency in the private security officer qualifications of the various states, thereby furthering the interests of public safety and welfare; now, therefore, be it

RESOLVED, that the International Association of Chiefs of Police (IACP) duly assembled at its 105th annual conference in Salt Lake City, Utah, hereby endorses the Guidelines for Private Security Officers drafted by the IACP's Private Sector Liaison Committee, and supports legislation that incorporates those recommendations, in whole or in major part, or other enabling legislation in furtherance therefore; and be it

FURTHER RESOLVED, that the IACP convey its position of support for such legislation to nations and political subdivisions thereof.