C.R.S. 24-31-315 Training & Resource Guide

About C.R.S. 24-31-315

In July 2015, C.R.S. 24-31-315 was created by House Bill 15-1287 to mandate in-service training requirements for Colorado peace officers. The initial training mandate was completed on July 1st, 2017. In 2021, C.R.S. 24-31-315(1)(b) was added to create mandated training on Improving First Responder Interactions with People with Disabilities which will take effect July 1st, 2022.

After July 1st, 2022 every POST certified full-time, part-time, and reserve peace officer employed by a Colorado law enforcement agency is required to train in Proper Holds and Restraints, Anti-Bias training, Community Policing / Community Partnership training, De-Escalation training and Interactions with People with Disabilities. These classes can be taken in a classroom setting or agencies may include interactive, web-based training to fulfill this mandate. The curriculum for these classes is at the discretion of the chief executive of each agency. These classes can also be used to fulfill the 24 hours of mandatory annual in-service training specified in POST Rule 28.

The training cycle will be considered completed once the officer receives a total of 4 hours of Proper Holds and Restraints training, 4 hours of Anti-Bias training, 2 hours of Community Policing/Community Partnership training, 2 hours of De-Escalation training, 1 hour of Interactions with People with Disabilities training, and 1 hour of POST provided Online training of Missing and Murdered Indigenous Relatives training.

Upon completion of the training cycle, the five-year deadline will be re-set from the date the last mandated training was completed. For instance, an officer has completed 10 hours of the mandated training and just needs 2 hours of De-Escalation training. The officer completes the De-escalation training on January 1st, 2020. Their new deadline for their next training cycle becomes January 1st, 2025.

Once training has been completed, the chief executive of each agency is responsible for the accurate tracking of training attendance into the POST records management system (Benchmark Portal). If an officer does not comply with the training requirements of C.R.S. 24-31-315, their certification will be suspended and will not be reinstated until the training requirements are met and documentation is submitted to POST.

If an officer is on leave or unemployed when their training expiration date expires, they will have six months from the time of their return to duty to complete the mandated training. All provisionally certified officers will be given six months to comply with the training mandate for the first time.

In order to track this training mandate, all officers required to comply with C.R.S. 24-31-315 will have a certification added to their POST training record. The certification is called "24-31-315 Mandated Training." The certification will show an expiration date by which the officer must have completed the mandated trainings. Once the mandated trainings are completed, this certification will renew itself and give a new five year expiration date. This certification will be visible to training coordinators and agency administrators through the POST Portal.

If an officer is on leave or unemployed when their training expiration date expires, they will have six months from the time of their return to duty to complete the mandated training. All provisionally certified officers will be given six months to comply with the training mandate for the first time.

Commission on Improving First Responder Interactions with People with Disabilities

Training development resources recommended by the Commission formed by House Bill 21-1122 can be found below. 24-31-315 mandates in-service training be provided on a rotating 5 year schedule to include Interactions with People with Disabilities. The Commission formed by House Bill 21-1122 has supplied law enforcement agencies with the following resources to assist in development of that training.

Agencies are not mandated to use these specific resources. They are being offered as an option and have not been verified or vetted by POST.

Toolkits and Resources

The Commission developed toolkits for the following focus areas. Each topic includes a sample course content starter and a list of resources to help Law Enforcement agencies develop in-service training to meet the specific needs of their communities. These are optional resources.

Alzheimer's & Dementia