CA PSO Training Requirements

PSO Training Requirements for a Registered PSO

If you are a PSO, you must complete the BSIS Security Personnel Skills Training 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 December 1, 2023 or later to include Appropriate Use of Force training and increased the number of hours of training a PSO must take in the first 6 months from 16 to 40.

PSOs will be required to complete the same 8-hours of Power to Arrest and Appropriate Use of Force Training as security guards do to get a guard card.

Replacing the previous 16 hours of training 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.

Note:  Many of the BSIS website pages have not been updated to reflect the changes in the Security Personnel Skills Training Syllabus. However, there is a link on the BSIS home page to a PDF that announces the training requirement changes to include the in-person Appropriate Use of Force training.

Power to Arrest (3 Hours)

1. Overview of Power to Arrest and Appropriate Use of Force Training Manual and subject matter.
2. Responsibilities and ethics in citizen arrest and types of encounters.
3. Relationship between security personnel and a peace officer in making an arrest.
4. Limitations on security personnel power to arrest, and security personnel’s role including:
   • Background on private security industry
   • Contractual obligations
   • Company policies
5. Restrictions on searches and seizures.
6. Criminal and civil liabilities, including both of the following:
   • Personal liability
   • Employer liability
7. Trespass law.
8. Ethics and communications.
9. Emergency situation response, including response to medical emergencies.
10. Security officer safety.

In-person Appropriate Use of Force (5 Hours) with Traditional Classroom Instruction

Note:  This 5-hour training is required by a state law AB229 that was passed in 2021. Starting December 1, 2023, most of this 5-hours of training must be completed using traditional classroom instruction with the instructor physically present with the students.  This means that this Appropriate Use of Force training can’t be completed fully online. Use of Zoom or other video calls does not count as the instructor being physically present. See the syllabus below for which topics must be completed in-person.

The 5-hour Appropriate Use of Force training must be completed prior to the issuance of a PSO license per California Business and Professions Code Sections 7583.6 and 7583.8. Up to one hour of it can be taken online. At least four hours must be taken in-person in a traditional classroom.  According to 631 of Division 7 of Title 16 of the California Code of Regulation:

(b) “Traditional Classroom Instruction” is defined as 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.

(c) “Non-Traditional Instruction” is defined as instruction that includes, but is not limited to:

1. The use of internet courses, distance learning, e-learning, or virtual classrooms; and
2. The use of videos or media-based training modules without in-person instructors

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

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 PSOs. While a security guard and a PSO 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. Responding alarm agents are also considered security personnel and must complete 4 hours of training that includes topics about the Appropriate Use of Force before applying to be an alarm agent.

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.