Commissioned Security Officer

troglodyte · Post by **troglodyte** » Thu May 17, 2007 6:56 am

I've been kicking around the idea of going through the Level III Commissioned Securtiy Officer training for several reasons.

The problem is I can't find any cut-and-dried info. I've been to several State sites and security company sites but can't get a good read on what is really required.

Some sites lead me to believe that I can get the 30 hours and be a level III. Other sites make me think there are prerequsite for level III.

Anyone have a Idiot's Guide to Security Officers in Texas?

chewy555 · Post by **chewy555** » Thu May 17, 2007 7:07 am

I am a Commissioned security officer. I started out as a level 1 and 2, then got my commission. I was working with a security company as a non-commission security officer when I took the class to get my commission. Some schools will let you take it if you are not already working with a security company and some will not, but you will not get your commission until you are working for a company as a security officer.
As far as prerequsits go, that I am not sure of. I know that when I started working security I took a test and got my level 1 which is non-commissioned. And then later I decided that I wanted to get my commission so I could carry.
If you have any other questions just let me know.

Texasdoc · Post by **Texasdoc** » Thu May 17, 2007 8:59 am

try this one its spells it out well

http://www.txdps.state.tx.us/psb/cso.aspx

300shooter

txinvestigator · Post by **txinvestigator** » Thu May 17, 2007 10:31 am

I am a PSB instructor. A person who has never been in security will need to take levels one thru three in order to be commissioned. A commission is an authorization to carry a handgun while on duty or traveling to and from.

A CHL does not allow a security guard to carry a handgun, in fact, a security guard is expressly prohibited from carry concealed.

Level one training is required of every registrant with the Private Security Bureau. Level two is required of all commissioned and non-commissioned security officers.

Level three is the 30 hour commission training.

You can take level one and two online; http://www.txdps.state.tx.us/psb/testing/default.aspx

Print out the results when you complete them.

Level three must be completed at a licensed training school. The PSB website has a search feature where you can find schools. I happen to have a school.

You can only register with the PSB once hired by a company. The company will register you. Operating without a being under a licensed company is a crime.

If you have any specific questions fire away.

chewy555 · Post by **chewy555** » Thu May 17, 2007 10:37 am

I know security officers that have never had the level two and they are now commissioned. Do you know when this changed? I have taken both level one and level two.

txinvestigator · Post by **txinvestigator** » Thu May 17, 2007 10:56 am

chewy555 wrote:I know security officers that have never had the level two and they are now commissioned. Do you know when this changed? I have taken both level one and level two.

They were grandfathered. Once upon a time, level 2 was required within 90 days of employment. Realizing the nightmare of regulating that due to the employer hopping in the industry, the law changed, and many that never had level 2 were already commissioned.

There is no way to do that now for people new into the system.

Just as an aside, I attended the state association (ASSIST) local luncheon yesterday, and the LT over the Private Security Bureau was a speaker. There is soon to be a revamp of training. I am going to lobby to be on the committee that re-writes it.

It is also believed that the legislature is going to raise the training hour requirement next session. I support that.

chewy555 · Post by **chewy555** » Thu May 17, 2007 11:47 am

txinvestigator wrote:Just as an aside, I attended the state association (ASSIST) local luncheon yesterday, and the LT over the Private Security Bureau was a speaker. There is soon to be a revamp of training. I am going to lobby to be on the committee that re-writes it.

It is also believed that the legislature is going to raise the training hour requirement next session. I support that.

I think that it would be good to rewrite the training. I do not think that we have enough training. I hope that they raise the training needed to get or renew a commission. I know some security officers that need this.

srothstein · Post by **srothstein** » Thu May 17, 2007 10:24 pm

When they rewrite the rules, if you get on the committee, you might want to look at the way people were grandfathered in. I just happened to check on my records from the DPS link, since it has a search function. It shows I completed level III training in 1984. When I worked as a security guard, there was no levels, it was either commissioned or non-commissioned. The training was 32 hours total. I assume there have been a few changes in the intervening time period, and I have not really kept up with the security side of the licensing.

OK, in my case, I have kept up with the laws and received other training, but I assume there are other security officers grandfathered in who have not worked the field in a while and might find it necessary to go back to it for something. Some type of refresher might be a good requirement for them.

txinvestigator · Post by **txinvestigator** » Fri May 18, 2007 2:27 pm

srothstein wrote:When they rewrite the rules, if you get on the committee, you might want to look at the way people were grandfathered in. I just happened to check on my records from the DPS link, since it has a search function. It shows I completed level III training in 1984. When I worked as a security guard, there was no levels, it was either commissioned or non-commissioned. The training was 32 hours total. I assume there have been a few changes in the intervening time period, and I have not really kept up with the security side of the licensing.

OK, in my case, I have kept up with the laws and received other training, but I assume there are other security officers grandfathered in who have not worked the field in a while and might find it necessary to go back to it for something. Some type of refresher might be a good requirement for them.

Yes, the system is very flawed as is. Commissioned officers must renew every two years. However, if a commission expires over one year, then no renewal is allowed and the person must re-apply. But the state will accept a copy of his initial Level three/commission certificate to re-issue his commission.

That means a person who does not expire has to have 6 hours of CEU every two years, but a person who lets it lapse over 1 year does not have to get ANY training to re-activate.

It works the same with PI and manger registrations.

It should be done like TCEOSE. In order to re-activate you must get the current CEUs.

Mike1951 · Post by **Mike1951** » Fri May 18, 2007 2:45 pm

txinvestigator wrote:Yes, the system is very flawed as is. Commissioned officers must renew every two years. However, if a commission expires over one year, then no renewal is allowed and the person must re-apply. But the state will accept a copy of his initial Level three/commission certificate to re-issue his commission.

That's just wrong!

Somewhere around here, I've got the certificate showing I took the 30 hour course in the late '70's. I wouldn't presume to get commissioned without current training.

OTOH, TCLEOSE can be screwed up also. I took reserve officer training in 1975, followed by my basic in 1978. I held a full commission for over two full years. Back then, you needed 1 year employment to validate your commission. In the early '80's, I spent some time with another agency as a reserve again.

Back when it would have been possible to continue my training and maintain my commission, TCLEOSE claimed they had no record of any training or duty other than that as a reserve. I fought that battle for a while, making repeated calls. They said they only showed my most recent classification.

The 2+ years had been with a constable agency and the constable's mindset was not to do anything that didn't help him politically, so he refused to provide my records of time with his department.

After awhile, it was no longer practical to bring my training current, so I quit worrying about it.

KD5NRH · Post by **KD5NRH** » Sat May 19, 2007 8:17 pm

txinvestigator wrote:I am a PSB instructor.

Do you happen to offer "duty-realistic" training? You know, all 30 hours in one stretch, with bad coffee and stale junk food, just like real security work.

txinvestigator · Post by **txinvestigator** » Sat May 19, 2007 8:57 pm

KD5NRH wrote:
txinvestigator wrote:I am a PSB instructor.
Do you happen to offer "duty-realistic" training? You know, all 30 hours in one stretch, with bad coffee and stale junk food, just like real security work.

lol.

troglodyte · Post by **troglodyte** » Sat May 19, 2007 11:29 pm

Thanks for the websites. They help clear some things up.

Let me ask all of you in the business a couple of questions.

I work at a small private school which is a department of a private university. If I get licensed as a security officer can I be "employed" as a security officer for the university while maintaining my teaching position at the school?

Can I be on "on-call duty" while I am teaching?

Here's the situation. We are located across the street from the univeristy. Occasionally we have need for a security officer on our end of the campus and have to wait for the university's officiers to arrive. They are usually very timely but there are times it would be nice to have someone on campus.

If I am employed as a security officer with the university, can I be considered on stand-by while I go through my teaching day and activate when I am needed to be in service? Maybe something like an auxillary or reserve officer.

I may not even to go through with this...Just trying to get my ducks in a row so I may make a sound decision.

Liberty · Post by **Liberty** » Sun May 20, 2007 6:44 am

troglodyte wrote:Thanks for the websites. They help clear some things up.

Let me ask all of you in the business a couple of questions.

I work at a small private school which is a department of a private university. If I get licensed as a security officer can I be "employed" as a security officer for the university while maintaining my teaching position at the school?

Can I be on "on-call duty" while I am teaching?

Here's the situation. We are located across the street from the univeristy. Occasionally we have need for a security officer on our end of the campus and have to wait for the university's officiers to arrive. They are usually very timely but there are times it would be nice to have someone on campus.

If I am employed as a security officer with the university, can I be considered on stand-by while I go through my teaching day and activate when I am needed to be in service? Maybe something like an auxillary or reserve officer.

I may not even to go through with this...Just trying to get my ducks in a row so I may make a sound decision.

I don't know anything about the bussines except for some what TXI has spew forth. I do believe the only way for you to do this is to become an employee of the security company. You are talking about being armed ? and with uniform?

chewy555 · Post by **chewy555** » Sun May 20, 2007 6:53 am

troglodyte wrote:Thanks for the websites. They help clear some things up.

Let me ask all of you in the business a couple of questions.

I work at a small private school which is a department of a private university. If I get licensed as a security officer can I be "employed" as a security officer for the university while maintaining my teaching position at the school?

Can I be on "on-call duty" while I am teaching?

Here's the situation. We are located across the street from the univeristy. Occasionally we have need for a security officer on our end of the campus and have to wait for the university's officiers to arrive. They are usually very timely but there are times it would be nice to have someone on campus.

If I am employed as a security officer with the university, can I be considered on stand-by while I go through my teaching day and activate when I am needed to be in service? Maybe something like an auxillary or reserve officer.

I may not even to go through with this...Just trying to get my ducks in a row so I may make a sound decision.

Remember to work as a commissioned security officer you have to wear a uniform of the security company that you work for. So to do what you are asking you would have to teach in that uniform. That is if the university used security officers and not police officers. I am "on-call" with the company that I work for, but it is to work extra shifts.