Accreditation Programs

The Burlington Police Department was first accredited by the Commission on Accreditation for Law Enforcement Agencies, Inc, (CALEA) in April 1989. 

The agency has maintained accredited status, in good standing, for over 30 years and was re-accredited with Law Enforcement Advanced Gold Standard Accreditation at the March 2021 CALEA virtual Committee Hearing. 

The Burlington Police Department Law Enforcement Accreditation program received a good standing in Re-accreditation for the Year 2021, and our Burlington Communications Center progressed forward and received good standing in the Public Safety Accreditation Program for the Year 2021.

Accreditation also provides a substantial amount of information, in a consolidated form, that helps to manage this agency. Our CALEA standards require quarterly and annual reports and reviews. For instance, every year we look at our uses of force for the year. We evaluate trends in the number of officers and the number of citizens that are injured during violent encounters. We look at how often we use firearms and how often we use tasers. Should the data show a change from previous years, we direct the staff to conduct additional research and learn more. This may result in additional training for officers, the purchase of new or different equipment, or we may decide that some form of community outreach and education might be appropriate to maintain good relations with the people we serve.

Accreditation with CALEA is a voluntary process and we choose to be involved. We have made this choice to demonstrate our commitment to professionalism and transparency. There are nearly 18,000 eligible law enforcement agencies (local, state, and federal in the United States) that could choose to be accredited. For a variety of reasons, about 630 agencies are currently accredited. Based on the number of standards we comply with, we are in the top 3% of police agencies in this country. The Burlington Police Department is very proud of our accredited status and hopes our citizens are equally proud of their police department.

CALEA files are public records. Should you wish to learn more about law enforcement or public safety communications accreditation, please contact Policy/Planning & Accreditation Director, Kim Biebel or Chief of Police, Brian Long.