The Massachusetts Police Accreditation Commission offers and oversees an accreditation program for the Commonwealth’s law enforcement community. The Commission currently offers two program awards: Certification and Accreditation.

Like accreditation programs in other disciplines, the accreditation process for the police profession consists of two major components:

  1. The establishment of a body of standards that promotes best practices for the profession; and
  2. The administration of a voluntary assessment process by which agencies can be publicly recognized for meeting those standards.

The annual fee is based on agency size and the maximum allowable complement or budgeted total number of full-time police officers in the agency.

NOTE – if any agency has vacant positions for their total allowable number of full-time officers, those vacancies are included when determining the total amount of the fee invoiced. The cost is pro-rated by the total number of months remaining in the fiscal year for enrollment after the start of the current fiscal year.

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Law Enforcement Agencies are eligible to apply for and to become Certified and/or Accredited through participation in the Accreditation Program if the following two conditions are met: 

The agency is eligible through legal authority, meaning that the agency’s sworn officers:

  • are mandated to enforce laws, AND
  • are granted the legal authority to make an arrest by law, AND
  • are certified by The Massachusetts Peace Officer Standards and Training (POST) Commission.

The Commission determines that an agency is eligible. 

Examples of eligible agencies include municipal, state, and specialized (e.g., campus, transit, and housing) law enforcement agencies.

The benefits of Law Enforcement Certification and Accreditation vary among participating agencies based on the agency’s status when it enters the process. In other words, the benefits will be better known when the agency quantifies the “changes” that it made in agency operations as a direct result of participating in this process to comply with program standards. Generally, these changes involve policy writing, minor facility improvements, and in some cases, equipment purchases.

Upon receipt of a signed Program Application, MPAC Staff will arrange a call or meeting with an applicant agency’s CEO to verify their participation eligibility and discuss entry into the program.

As part of the Application Phase, agencies are required to appoint an Accreditation Manager (AM). This position is responsible for managing the agency’s Accreditation process and is the agency’s primary liaison with the Commission on all matters concerning Accreditation. A sample job description is available from MPAC, identifying the position’s primary duties and responsibilities.

The Accreditation Manager position should not be viewed as the sole agency employee responsible for compliance and adherence to our program’s requirements. Instead, the entire agency, under the CEO’s guidance and supervision, must actively participate in compliance with our program. The Accreditation Manager manages and coordinates compliance areas of responsibility with all employees to build and maintain an agency’s accreditation files.

Upon MPAC’s processing of the agency’s application, the chief executive officer and the accreditation Manager will be provided access to the Commission’s Member Network Website (MPACnetwork).

The answer to this question is unique to each agency.  Once enrolled in the program, agencies will initiate a comprehensive self-assessment of their agency.  In other words, a thorough examination of the agency, by the agency.  Without a doubt, it is the most labor intensive and time-consuming phase of the process because the activities in this phase initially begin with a review of the certification standards and include all of the activities associated with preparing compliance documentation for the agency’s on-site assessment by Commission-appointed assessors.

Agencies in self-assessment may be required to attain at least a Certification Award within the Commission’s established deadlines.

NOTE – As our program moves forward under the 6th Edition Standards and Program requirements, previous guidance that indicated that there “are no time limits for achieving initial Certification” may no longer be applicable. However, any agency in self-assessment will be notified of updates and specific deadline requirements as they are established with consideration of a reasonable time frame for the agency to achieve at least initial Certification.

Certification is the first tier or level of our program. It is highly recommended that an agency enters our program by first attaining Certification. The standards established for the Certification program allow an agency to transition from self-assessment in a measured way with a reduced totaled number of standards based on essential functions and areas of focus for the agency.

Certification is not a lesser program, but our program’s first level or tier. Obtaining Certification first can aid an agency in assessing the increased number of standards required to attain Accreditation. Once Certification is achieved, the decision if or when to move from Certification to Accreditation is based on that individual agency’s specific needs or limitations.

Accreditation is the second tier or level of our program. It encompasses all the Certification standards along with additional mandatory and a percentage of optional accreditation standards. Accreditation is best accomplished upon completing an agency’s Certification to meet all readiness and program-related requirements.

Pursuing accreditation is an agency decision so no, you don’t have to get accredited. Certification awards are granted for three-year periods so you would be assessed for re-certification to maintain your status.

If an agency wishes to enter directly into Accreditation from self-assessment, they may request to do so in writing to the Executive Director. They will provide an application for initial Accreditation to MPAC Staff that focuses on verification and confirmation of readiness by the agency to skip Certification. If approved, a department would then be assessed for Accreditation on all the Certification standards, additional mandatory accreditation standards, and a percentage of optional standards.

Generally, standards focus on high liability, high risk areas of law enforcement operations:

  • Agency Authority, Jurisdiction and Use of Force
  • Selection and Promotion of Personnel, Training, Discipline and Internal Affairs
  • Patrol, Traffic Operations, Criminal Investigations, Victim/Witness Assistance, Detainee Transportation, Holding Facilities, and Emergency Response Planning
  • Records and Communications
  • Collection and Preservation of Evidence, Property and Evidence Control

Any standard that is not a function or responsibility of the agency will be deemed not applicable and will be waived through a formal waiver process.

Yes.  The Commission offers introductory workshops throughout the year such as Program Orientation and Getting Started (described below) and there is no cost to attend.  The Commission also hosts three-day conferences during which introductory training and presentations on current issues affecting law enforcement are offered. 

For MPAC training, information, and resources, please visit The Commission’s Online Training Portal!

Program Orientation:

Police Certification and Accreditation – This workshop is designed for those who are new to the process or who have been in the process and need refresher training.  It is NOT a sales pitch, but an overview of the Massachusetts Police Accreditation Program detailing what agencies need to know and do in order to get their department certified (and maybe accredited later).  Attendees will hear about the nature and scope of the on-site assessment; the standards for certification including those impacting police facilities, equipment and personnel; the cost to participate; the workload involved; and finally what support services are available from the Commission.

Getting Started:

Your department has decided that certification is a worthy goal and wants to be certified; now what?  This workshop provides direction on how and where to begin the process, focusing on start-up tasks, written directive systems and policy writing. The first part of the workshop focuses on a Checklist and Guide for Getting Started.  The second half focuses on standards dealing with written directive systems because they are the foundation for complying with accreditation standards.  Particular attention will be given to: types of directives; formatting directives; methods for disseminating them; systems to acknowledge when directives have been read; and finally, how to keep them updated.