PSO Training Requirements for a Registered PSO
If you are a PSO, you must complete the16-hour BSIS course syllabus within either
- the first 6 months of receiving your PSO registration;
- or within 6 months of the date you are hired by a Private Security Employer (PSE).
Bureau of Security and Investigative Services PSO Training Syllabus
The BSIS PSO training syllabus was developed by the BSIS as mandated by California State Law.
Note: New legislation passed in 2021 and 2022 update the PSO training syllabus for October 1, 2023 or later to include Use of Force training. The BSIS will issue a new training syllabus by October 1, 2023 or later. The in-person training might not be required until after December 31, 2023. The Use of Force training requirement start date depends on when the state regulatory committee approval department releases the new training materials to the public. The new training requirements were originally scheduled to start January 1, 2023, but have been delayed several times.
PSO Training Requirements Prior to October 1, 2023
This training syllabus includes:
2 Hours of Powers to Arrest
+ 2 Hours of Weapons of Mass Destruction and Terrorism Awareness
+ 12 Hours of security related courses as outlined below
= 16 Hours
PSO Training Syllabus Class Topics
The following is the outline of the courses required to become registered as a PSO.
Powers to Arrest
- Overview and Origin of Authority to Detain and Arrest
- Definition of a Detention
- Definition of an Arrest
- What is a Private Citizen’s Arrest
- Use of Force
- Legal
- Employer Policy
- Search and Seizure
- 4th Amendment of the U.S. Constitution
- Acting as a Law Enforcement Agent
- Discovering Contraband
- Definition of Private/Public Property
- Jurisdiction
- Trespass
Weapons of Mass Destruction (WMD) and Terrorism Awareness
- Introduction and Overview of the Training
- The Role of a Security Officer
- The Nature of Terrorism
- Weapons of Mass Destruction
- Coordinating and Sharing of Critical Information
Roles and Responsibilities
- Definition of Proprietary
- Employed by Company
- Distinctive Uniform
- Unarmed
- Interact with Public
- General
- Private Citizen
- Authority Originates from Company
- Service Oriented
- Employer Specific Policy
Public and Employer Expectations
- Ethics
- Professionalism
- Job Conduct
- Cultural Awareness
- Sexual Harassment
Liability Issues
- Overview of Civil Law, Criminal Law and Torts
- Personal
- Employer
- Bureau of Security and Investigative Services Laws and Regulations
- Explanation of a Duty to Care
- Reasonable Expectation for a “Safe Environment”
- Employer Specific
- Explanation of Negligence
- Examples of Common Liabilities
- Accurate Reporting/Documentation
Communication and Conflict Management
- Interpersonal Communications Skills
- Approach
- Body Language
- Listening
- Empathy
- Situational Awareness
- Environment
- Positioning
- Subjects
- Managing Disputes
- Diffusing/De-escalation of Situations
- Reacting to Violent Incidents
- Types
- Law Enforcement Notification
Emergency Procedures
- Emergencies Related to Acts of Nature
- Emergencies Related to Acts of Persons
- Overview of Public Expectation during an Emergency
- Explanation of Emergency Plans
- Explanation of Emergency Evacuation Plans
PSO Training Requirements After October 1, 2023
PSOs will be required to complete the same 8-hours of Powers to Arrest and Appropriate Use of Force Training as security guards do to get a guard card. It is unclear as of August 6, 2023, if PSOs will be required to take 32 additional hours of training the first year like security guards or only an additional 8-hours.
Replacing the previous 4 hours of PTA and WMD training from 4 hours to 8 hours for PSOs enhances public safety because PSOs also interact with the public daily and face many of the same situations as guard card holders. Because of this interaction, it is imperative that PSOs receive adequate training to improve interactions and outcomes.
Section 645, Title 16, Division 7 of the California Code of Regulations determines the courses required for proprietary private security officers. The courses must meet the standards in section 7574.5 of the Business and Professions Code.
Powers to Arrest (3 Hours)
- Overview of Powers to Arrest and Appropriate Use of Force Training Manual and subject matter.
- Responsibilities and ethics in citizen arrest and types of encounters.
- Relationship between security personnel and a peace officer in making an arrest.
- Limitations on security personnel power to arrest, and security personnel’s role including:
- Background on private security industry
- Contractual obligations
- Company policies
- Restrictions on searches and seizures.
- Criminal and civil liabilities, including both of the following:
- Personal liability
- Employer liability
- Trespass law.
- Ethics and communications.
- Emergency situation response, including response to medical emergencies.
- Security officer safety.
Appropriate Use of Force (5 Hours)
Note: This 5-hour training is required by a state law AB229 that was passed in 2021. Starting Oct 1, 2023, most of this 5-hours of training must be completed in a physical classroom with the instructor physically present with the students. This means that this Use of Force training can’t be completed fully online. See the syllabus below for which topics must be completed in-person.
Note: Any new hire must have completed the latest Power to Arrest and Appropriate Use of Force course, even if they have an active PSO license and have previously completed the “old” Power to Arrest and Weapons of Mass Destruction course. This new hire training requirement is how the BSIS can ensure all PSOs will eventually complete the Power to Arrest and Appropriate Use of Force course.
Syllabus Objective: To introduce, instruct, and familiarize the individual on the appropriate use of force topics listed in section 7583.7 of the Business and Professions Code.
1. Legal standards for use of force
a. Statutes
b. Licensee and client contractual obligations
c. Civil and criminal liability
2. The use of objectively reasonable force – (In-person)
a. Objectively reasonable standard
b. Restraint techniques and their implications
c. Force options
d. Real-life scenarios
3. Duty to intercede
4. Supervisory responsibilities
a. Incident reporting requirements pursuant to 7583.2, 7583.4 and 7574.37 of the Business and Professions Code as applicable
5. Use of force review and analysis – (In-person)
a. Real-life scenarios
6. De-escalation and interpersonal communication training, including tactical methods that use time, distance, cover, and concealment, to avoid escalating situations that lead to violence – (In-person)
a. Common misconceptions and benefits of de-escalation
b. Four concepts of de-escalation
1. Self-control
2. Effective communication
3. Scene assessment and management
4. Force options
c. Real-life scenarios
7. Implicit and explicit bias and cultural competency as defined in Section 631
a. Define and explain:
1. Implicit bias
2. Explicit bias
3. Cultural competency
b. Strategies for effective communication within a diverse community
c. Real-life scenarios
8. Skills, including de-escalation techniques, to effectively, safely, and respectfully interact with people with disabilities or behavioral health issues
a. Strategies for identifying and effectively communicating and deescalating a situation with an individual with a disability or behavioral health issues
b. Real-life scenarios
9. Use of force scenarios, including simulations of low-frequency, high-risk situations and calls for service, shoot-or-don’t-shoot situations, and real time force option decision making – (In-person)
a. Factors that can affect an individual’s response when threatened with danger
b. Factors to consider before using force
c. Real-life scenarios
10. Mental health and policing, including bias and stigma
a. Categories of mental illness as defined in Section 631
b. Biases and stigmas surrounding mental illness
c. Real-life scenarios
11. Active shooter situations – (In-person)
a. Recognizing an active shooter situation
b. Roles and responsibilities of security personnel
c. Real-life scenarios
Traditional Classroom Instruction: Instruction where the instructor is physically present with students in a classroom, or on a firing range, and is available to answer student questions while providing the required training. The instructor provides demonstrations and hands-on instruction in order to establish each student’s proficiency as to the course content.
Non-Traditional Instruction: Instruction that includes, but is not limited to:
- The use of internet courses, distance learning, e-learning, or virtual classrooms; and
- The use of videos or media-based training modules without in-person instructors.
Security Personnel Definition
In the new training manuals, the BSIS will use “security personnel” to mean a security guard or a proprietary private security officer (PSO). This change is necessary because the training materials use the term “security personnel” to capture both security guards and PPSOs. While a security guard and a PPSO are different licenses, the training is applicable to both, so using the term security personnel reinforces that the new manual content is applicable to both license types.
Completion Certificate
For each course or group of courses you take and finish satisfactorily, the business or person providing your training must give you a Certificate of Completion. The certificate should have on it:
- The type of course(s) you took
- The number of hours of training you took
- Your name
- The name of the company you took the training from
- The name of the licensed instructor who taught the course
- The Training Provider license number of the company or person you took the training from
- The date you completed the course(s)
- A certificate of completion number (the BSIS uses this number for tracking purposes)
- A statement that the course you took complies with the Department of Consumer Affairs’ Skills Training Course for Proprietary Private Security Officers
What should You Read Next?
- If you want to know more about the PSO training requirements, read PSO Training.
- If you want to find out how to get online security officer training, read Take Online Courses.
- If you want find out how take go take a PSO course on-site at a PSO Training Provider, read Attend Classroom Courses.
- If you want to know more about additional training requirements after you become a private security officer, read PSO Continuing Education.
- If you want to read the general steps to registering as a PSO, read How to Become a PSO.