Colorado
Colorado’s Peace Officers Standards and Training (P.O.S.T.) Board certifies police officers and deputies, must revoke certification permanently for listed uses of force and other misconduct, and keeps a public database of officer conduct by statute. Since 2023 the State has set a minimum age of 21, rebuilt the conduct database, made revocation for civil liability discretionary, added revocation for sexual abuse of people in jail, and barred revoked officers from teaching or sitting on the Board.
- Sources checked
At a glance
- Certifying body
- Peace Officers Standards and Training (P.O.S.T.) Board, in the Department of Law and chaired by the Attorney General or the Attorney General’s designee (C.R.S. 24-31-302). Since August 12, 2026, HB26-1312 sets the Board at “twenty-eight members,” but the seats it lists add up to 29 (see Changes). A person whose certification was revoked may not be appointed. Sheriffs’ deputies are certified by the same Board.
- Statute
- C.R.S. 24-31-301 to 24-31-322 (P.O.S.T.). C.R.S. 24-31-901 to 24-31-908 (law enforcement integrity: recordings, revocation under 24-31-904, whistleblowers). C.R.S. 16-2.5-101 et seq. (peace officer status; credibility disclosures at 16-2.5-502). C.R.S. 18-1-707 (use of force) and 18-8-802 (duty to report and intervene). Rules are in 4 CCR 901-1, current version effective November 15, 2025.
- Minimum standards
- Basic certification “must” include a high school diploma or equivalent; P.O.S.T.-approved basic training or equivalent training elsewhere; passing P.O.S.T. exams; current first aid and CPR; and, since August 12, 2026, being at least 21. Physical and psychological evaluations are required within 1 year before appointment. Applicants get a state and FBI fingerprint check. Certification is denied for a felony or listed misdemeanors. Before hiring, an agency must check the P.O.S.T. conduct database (C.R.S. 24-31-305, 24-31-303, 24-31-304). The rules have no age floor; no 2026 rulemaking to add one was listed as of October 19, 2026.
- Decertification
- P.O.S.T. “shall” permanently revoke under C.R.S. 24-31-904(1)(a) for: a criminal conviction for unlawful force or failure to intervene causing serious bodily injury or death; an administrative finding of the same, or of a violation of 18-1-707, causing serious bodily injury or death; failure to intervene, or a violation of 18-8-805(1) or (2)(a)(I), resulting in death; and, since 2026, sexual assault, unlawful sexual contact, or invasion of privacy against a person in jail custody. A mandatory suspension of at least 1 year applies to other cases listed in 904(2)(a). Since 2025, civil liability for “excessive or unconstitutional” force or failure to intervene allows, but does not require, revocation or suspension. Suspension or revocation also follows a felony or listed misdemeanor conviction, and revocation follows an agency finding of untruthfulness (24-31-305(2), (2.5)).
- Public decertification list
- Yes, by statute. P.O.S.T. “shall” keep a searchable database on its website of officer conduct: untruthfulness, repeated training failures, revocation, termination for cause, resignation or retirement during an investigation, resignation in lieu of termination, being charged with a disqualifying crime, and credibility-disclosure (Brady) bases. Officers can appeal (C.R.S. 24-31-321).
- National Decertification Index
- No reporting statute found. 4 CCR 901-1, Rule 15(g), says cheating on the certification exam “may also result in an entry on the National Decertification Index as misconduct.”
- Continuing training
- Certified officers must complete “a minimum of 24 hours of in-service training annually,” at least 12 of them perishable skills (4 CCR 901-1, Rule 28). By statute the yearly programs “must” include restraint and holds, 2 hours of anti-bias training, and, since 2026, 2 hours on trauma-informed response to victim-survivors. P.O.S.T. “shall” suspend certification for non-compliance, except for officers not serving full-time (C.R.S. 24-31-315).
Changes, 2023 to 2026
Minimum age 21; larger Board; revoked officers barred from the Board and from teaching
Basic certification requirements “must” now include that the officer is at least 21 (C.R.S. 24-31-305(1)(a)(V)). No statutory age minimum existed before. The act’s title speaks of age 21 to pass P.O.S.T. exams; the enacted text puts it in the certification requirements. The Board grows from 24 members. The act says “twenty-eight members,” but the Attorney General, the FBI Denver special agent in charge, the public safety executive director, and 26 governor appointees add up to 29. The appointees include a local government representative, 5 chiefs, 5 sheriffs, 6 line officers, a line-officer organization representative, 2 state-agency officers, 3 non-law-enforcement members, academy directors, and a reserve-officer organization executive. A revoked person “shall not” be appointed to the Board or approved as a skills instructor. P.O.S.T. “shall not” approve an academy whose instructor was revoked after September 1, 2026. The 2026 session ended May 13, 2026, so the act took effect August 12.
For officers: If your certification was ever revoked, you cannot teach skills at a P.O.S.T. academy or serve on the Board.
Missing-person alert training for certification and renewal
A person seeking certification, or renewal of an expired certification under 24-31-305(1.7), “shall” complete public safety department training on missing-person alerts. P.O.S.T. “shall” add it to basic, reserve, and renewal training (new 24-31-319(3)).
For officers: If you are renewing an expired certification, expect the missing-person alert course.
Training on Colorado’s civil immigration detainer law
P.O.S.T. “shall” set training standards on officer compliance with C.R.S. 24-76.6-102 (new 24-31-303(1)(v)). Officers certified as of July 1, 2026 “shall” complete the training before December 31, 2027. That deadline provision repeals July 1, 2028; the standards duty stays.
For officers: Finish the immigration detainer training by the end of 2027.
Deaths from police force: family video rights, family notice, and limits on officer statements
For a use of force causing death, within 21 days the agency “shall” make reasonable efforts to find the decedent’s immediate family and give them the recordings, unless they decline. If there is a misconduct complaint arising from the death, it then “shall” release the recordings to any requester after that 21-day period. When all investigations and any criminal case are complete, the recordings “shall” go to the family on request. For complaints not involving a death, the existing 21-day release rule now sends recordings “to the person who made the request” rather than “to the public” (C.R.S. 24-31-902(2)). The act re-enacts 16-2.5 Part 3. The duty to keep multi-agency investigation protocols for officer shootings and deaths dates from 2015 and is carried over. New: the family must be notified within 24 hours after the scene is cleared. New 16-2.5-303 bars investigating officers from prejudicial public statements and requires disclaimers on edited briefing videos.
For officers: If you are investigating a use-of-force death, do not make public statements that could prejudice the case.
Permanent revocation for sexual abuse of people in jail custody
New mandatory ground in C.R.S. 24-31-904(1)(a)(VI): P.O.S.T. “shall” permanently revoke if an administrative law judge, hearing officer, or internal investigation finds the officer committed sexual assault, unlawful sexual contact, or invasion of privacy for sexual gratification against a person in a county or municipal jail. The act also requires body-camera tagging of jail strip searches and yearly sheriff reports to the Division of Criminal Justice. Those reporting duties end in 2031.
For officers: An internal finding of sexual misconduct against someone in jail now ends your certification permanently.
Yearly training adds 2 hours on trauma and victim-survivors
The annual in-service programs “must” now include “a two-hour training to improve a peace officer’s understanding of the impact of trauma on victim-survivors of crimes” and how best to respond (C.R.S. 24-31-315(1)(a)).
For officers: The trauma-informed module is part of your required in-service content.
P.O.S.T. rules carry out HB25-1136 and set a federal reciprocity pilot
The rulemaking puts HB25-1136 into the rules and clarifies procedures. Rule 11(i) sets a Federal Reciprocity Provisional Certification Pilot, stated as effective July 9, 2025. It “expires on December 31, 2026,” unless the Board extends it. Participants must meet C.R.S. 24-31-308: at least 1 of the preceding 3 years in good standing as the federal equivalent of a certified officer. Substantial equivalence to Colorado standards is not required, and military police count as federal officers for the pilot.
For officers: If you served as a federal officer or military police and a Colorado agency hires you or gives you a notarized intent-to-hire letter, the pilot may let you certify without showing substantially equivalent training, after gap training set by the hiring agency, until the end of 2026.
Officers can sue over whistleblower retaliation
C.R.S. 24-31-906 has barred retaliation against officers who report misconduct since 2021. The act widens the list of barred actions and adds a private right of action, after internal procedures are used or the employer fails to act within 180 days. Remedies include reinstatement, back pay, damages, and attorney fees. The Governmental Immunity Act does not apply, and the limit is 2 years. The protection does not cover knowingly false disclosures, disclosures made with disregard for the truth or outside internal procedures, or the officer’s own misconduct.
For officers: If you are punished for reporting misconduct, you can now sue your employer.
Conduct database rebuilt; civil-liability revocation made discretionary
The public database moves from 24-31-303(1)(r) to new 24-31-321. Untruthfulness, training failures, revocation, and credibility-disclosure items carry over. Resignation in lieu of termination is added. Resignation or retirement now counts only if the misconduct, if sustained, “would more likely than not” lead to an entry. Being “charged” with a disqualifying crime replaces being under criminal investigation, and employers must still tell P.O.S.T. when charges are filed. Officers get an appeal process and a show-cause hearing. Agency heads “shall” certify accuracy, and a knowing or willful false or missing report brings a fine and a referral to the district attorney. In 24-31-904, mandatory revocation and suspension for civil liability are repealed. P.O.S.T. now “may” permanently revoke on civil liability for “excessive or unconstitutional” force or failure to intervene that resulted in serious bodily injury or death, and “may” suspend for at least 1 year where it did not. Hiring agencies must get a waiver for prior-employer files when they make a conditional offer. P.O.S.T. “may” contact a prior employer that withholds files; if they are not produced within 6 days of that contact, P.O.S.T. “shall” withhold funding for 1 year, impose fines, or both. The district attorney process to remove credibility-disclosure records (16-2.5-502(3)(e)) is repealed.
For officers: You can now appeal a database entry, and a civil judgment no longer means automatic revocation.
Revenue department investigators must be certified
Auto industry division investigators, supervisors, and the director become peace officers who “must” be certified. In the new firearms dealer division, investigators and supervisors “must” be certified, and the director and deputy directors “may” be.
For officers: These Department of Revenue posts now require P.O.S.T. certification.
P.O.S.T. rule amendments for procedural clarity
The rulemaking summary says the amendments “provide further procedural clarity” and make sure statutory requirements are met. They were not adopted in response to new legislation. The rule text was not compared with the earlier version.
For officers: No new duty for officers was identified.
Military law enforcement service counts toward provisional certification
C.R.S. 24-31-308(1)(a) let P.O.S.T. grant provisional certification to officers from another state or “federal jurisdiction excluding the armed forces.” The act strikes “excluding the armed forces,” so armed forces law enforcement service now qualifies.
For officers: If you were a military police officer in the last 3 years, you may qualify for provisional certification.
“Excited delirium” banned from training and reports
Officer training “shall not” include or refer to “excited delirium,” and such courses “shall not” be reported to P.O.S.T. for credit. Officers “shall not” use the term in incident reports, though they may describe specific behavior. Training on altered mental states is still allowed (new C.R.S. 24-31-907).
For officers: Describe what you observed; do not write “excited delirium” in a report.
Prone restraint policies and training required
By July 1, 2025, every agency with certified officers, every sheriff, and the State Patrol “shall” adopt and post prone-restraint policies (new C.R.S. 18-1-707(2.7)). Policies must cover calling for medical aid, rendering aid, and moving the person to a recovery position as soon as practicable, and must be reviewed every 5 years. By July 1, 2026, agencies “shall” train officers on them.
For officers: Move a restrained person out of the prone position as soon as practicable.
Duty to report and intervene reaches police dog handlers
The duties to report and to intervene in excessive force already existed (C.R.S. 18-8-802). They now name officers who handle law enforcement animals. The reporting duty also covers an officer who allows their animal to use excessive force.
For officers: Excessive force by a police dog must be reported like any other.
P.O.S.T. rules: hearing procedure for revocation and suspension
The rulemaking summary says it sets administrative hearing procedures for revocation and suspension cases, expands the Director’s authority for urgent public-safety situations, and clarifies academy and applicant procedures. The rule text was not compared with the earlier version.
For officers: Revocation and suspension cases follow the hearing procedure in the P.O.S.T. rules.
DACA recipients and asylum applicants may seek certification
P.O.S.T. “may” adopt rules for “eligible immigrants” seeking certification: people with DACA status or a pending asylum application (new C.R.S. 24-31-320). An agency “may” change its firearms policy to let them carry, consistent with federal law, and they “may” enroll in an academy if their agency allows it.
For officers: Colorado has no statutory citizenship requirement for certification.
P.O.S.T. rule amendments after legislative review
The rulemaking summary says it clarifies definitions and deadlines, lets the Director’s designee act for the Director, and fixes internal references, in response to issues raised by the Office of Legislative Legal Services. Rule 28 (in-service training) was among the rules amended; whether its 24-hour minimum was new then was not checked.
For officers: No new duty for officers was identified.
Not yet in force and pending
- Federal reciprocity pilot, December 31, 2026: the pilot in Rule 11(i) expires unless the Board extends it or makes it permanent. 4 CCR 901-1
- Academy update proposal, December 31, 2030: under HB26-1312 the Attorney General “shall” propose updates to the basic, reserve, and refresher academy programs by this date. HB26-1312
No 2026 P.O.S.T. rulemaking was listed on the Code of Colorado Regulations as of October 19, 2026, so the rules do not yet reflect the age-21 requirement or SB26-120. The General Assembly adjourned on May 13, 2026.
Checked and unchanged
- C.R.S. 18-1-707 (use of force): only the 2024 prone-restraint subsection was added. No 2025 or 2026 act amends it.
- C.R.S. 24-31-305(2.5) (revocation for untruthfulness) and 24-31-304 (fingerprint checks): no 2023–2026 amendment. C.R.S. 16-2.5-502 (credibility disclosures): only the removal process in (3)(e) was repealed, in 2025.
- C.R.S. 24-31-305(5) and 24-31-904(1)(b) still refer to the old database location, 24-31-303(1)(r).
- No Colorado statute on officer masks or officer identification was enacted from 2023 to 2026.
- Not counted: SB25-275 (relocated definitions); SB25-300 (nonsubstantive revision); HB25-1114; HB25-1181 (Colorado Rangers); SB25-310; HB23-1042 (juvenile interrogation training); HB26-1009; and HB26-1103.
Last updated October 19, 2026Source: United States Council for Law & InvestigationCite as: United States Council for Law & Investigation, “Colorado officer certification: Officer Certification Tracker,” uscli.org/officer-certification-tracker/colorado (last updated October 19, 2026). Text licensed CC BY 4.0.