A. The Board may adopt regulations in accordance with the Administrative Process Act (§ 2.2-4000 et seq.), establishing compulsory minimum, entry-level, in-service, and advanced training standards for persons employed by private security services businesses in classifications defined in § 9.1-138. The regulations may include provisions delegating to the Board’s staff the right to inspect the facilities and programs of persons conducting training to ensure compliance with the law and Board regulations. In establishing compulsory training standards for each of the classifications defined in § 9.1-138, the Board shall be guided by the policy of this section to secure the public safety and welfare against incompetent or unqualified persons engaging in the activities regulated by this section and Article 4 (§ 9.1-138 et seq.) of this chapter. The compulsory minimum, entry-level, and in-service training standards for an unarmed security officer, armed security officer, courier, security canine handler, and alarm respondent shall include a training requirement on recognizing and reporting instances of suspected human trafficking. The regulations may provide for partial exemption from such compulsory, entry-level training for persons having previous employment as law-enforcement officers for a local, state or the federal government, to include units of the United States armed forces, or for persons employed in classifications defined in § 9.1-138. However, no such exemption shall be granted to persons having less than five continuous years of such employment, nor shall an exemption be provided for any person whose employment as a law-enforcement officer or whose employment as a private security services business employee was terminated because of his misconduct or incompetence. The regulations may include separate provisions for full exemption from compulsory training for persons having previous training that meets or exceeds the minimum training standards and has been approved by the Department. However, no such exemption shall be granted to persons whose employment as a private security services business employee was terminated because of his misconduct or incompetence. No regulation adopted by the Board shall prevent any person employed by an electronic security business, other than an alarm respondent, or as a locksmith from carrying a firearm in the course of his duties when such person carries with him a valid concealed handgun permit issued in accordance with Article 6.1 (§ 18.2-307.1 et seq.) of Chapter 7 of Title 18.2.

criminal case

Ask a criminal law question, get an answer ASAP!
Click here to chat with a criminal defense lawyer and protect your rights.

Terms Used In Virginia Code 9.1-141

  • Alarm respondent: means an individual who responds to the signal of an alarm for the purpose of detecting an intrusion of the home, business or property of the end user. See Virginia Code 9.1-138
  • Armed: means a private security registrant who carries or has immediate access to a firearm in the performance of his duties. See Virginia Code 9.1-138
  • Board: means the Criminal Justice Services Board. See Virginia Code 9.1-101
  • Certification: means the method of regulation indicating that qualified persons have met the minimum requirements as private security services training schools, private security services instructors, compliance agents, or certified detector canine handler examiners. See Virginia Code 9.1-138
  • Courier: means any armed person who transports or offers to transport from one place to another documents or other papers, negotiable or nonnegotiable instruments, or other small items of value that require expeditious services. See Virginia Code 9.1-138
  • Department: means the Department of Criminal Justice Services. See Virginia Code 9.1-101
  • Electronic security business: means any person who engages in the business of or undertakes to (i) install, service, maintain, design or consult in the design of any electronic security equipment to an end user; (ii) respond to or cause a response to electronic security equipment for an end user; or (iii) have access to confidential information concerning the design, extent, status, password, contact list, or location of an end user's electronic security equipment. See Virginia Code 9.1-138
  • Employed: means to be in an employer/employee relationship where the employee is providing work in exchange for compensation and the employer directly controls the employee's conduct and pays some taxes on behalf of the employee. See Virginia Code 9.1-138
  • Law-enforcement officer: means any full-time or part-time employee of a police department or sheriff's office which is a part of or administered by the Commonwealth or any political subdivision thereof, or any full-time or part-time employee of a private police department, and who is responsible for the prevention and detection of crime and the enforcement of the penal, traffic or highway laws of the Commonwealth, and shall include any (i) special agent of the Virginia Alcoholic Beverage Control Authority; (ii) police agent appointed under the provisions of § 56-353; (iii) officer of the Virginia Marine Police; (iv) conservation police officer who is a full-time sworn member of the enforcement division of the Department of Wildlife Resources; (v) investigator who is a sworn member of the security division of the Virginia Lottery; (vi) conservation officer of the Department of Conservation and Recreation commissioned pursuant to § Virginia Code 9.1-101
  • Locksmith: means any individual that performs locksmith services, or advertises or represents to the general public that the individual is a locksmith even if the specific term locksmith is substituted with any other term by which a reasonable person could construe that the individual possesses special skills relating to locks or locking devices, including use of the words lock technician, lockman, safe technician, safeman, boxman, unlocking technician, lock installer, lock opener, physical security technician or similar descriptions. See Virginia Code 9.1-138
  • Person: includes any individual, corporation, partnership, association, cooperative, limited liability company, trust, joint venture, government, political subdivision, or any other legal or commercial entity and any successor, representative, agent, agency, or instrumentality thereof. See Virginia Code 1-230
  • Private security services business: means any person engaged in the business of providing, or who undertakes to provide, armored car personnel, security officers, personal protection specialists, private investigators, couriers, security canine handlers, security canine teams, detector canine handlers, detector canine teams, alarm respondents, locksmiths, central station dispatchers, electronic security employees, electronic security sales representatives or electronic security technicians and their assistants to another person under contract, express or implied. See Virginia Code 9.1-138
  • Process: includes subpoenas, the summons and complaint in a civil action, and process in statutory actions. See Virginia Code 1-237
  • Registration: means a method of regulation whereby certain personnel employed by a private security services business are required to register with the Department pursuant to this article. See Virginia Code 9.1-138
  • Security canine: means a dog that has attended, completed, and been certified as a security canine by a certified security canine handler instructor in accordance with approved Department procedures and certification guidelines. See Virginia Code 9.1-138
  • State: when applied to a part of the United States, includes any of the 50 states, the District of Columbia, the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico, Guam, the Northern Mariana Islands, and the United States Virgin Islands. See Virginia Code 1-245
  • Unarmed security officer: means a natural person who performs the functions of observation, detection, reporting, or notification of appropriate authorities or designated agents regarding persons or property on the premises he is contracted to protect, and who does not carry or have access to a firearm in the performance of his duties. See Virginia Code 9.1-138
  • United States: includes the 50 states, the District of Columbia the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico, Guam, the Northern Mariana Islands and the United States Virgin Islands. See Virginia Code 1-255

B. The Board may enter into an agreement with other states for reciprocity or recognition of private security services businesses and their employees, duly licensed by such states. The agreements shall allow those businesses and their employees to provide and perform private security services within the Commonwealth to secure the public safety and welfare against incompetent, unqualified, unscrupulous, or unfit persons engaging in the activities of private security services businesses.

C. The Board may adopt regulations in accordance with the Administrative Process Act (§ 2.2-4000 et seq.) to secure the public safety and welfare against incompetent, unqualified, unscrupulous, or unfit persons engaging in the activities of private security services businesses that:

1. Establish the qualifications of applicants for registration, certification, or licensure under Article 4 (§ 9.1-138) of this chapter;

2. Examine, or cause to be examined, the qualifications of each applicant for registration, certification, or licensure, including when necessary the preparation, administration, and grading of examinations;

3. Certify qualified applicants for private security training schools and instructors or license qualified applicants as practitioners of private security services businesses;

4. Levy and collect fees for registration, certification, or licensure and renewal that are sufficient to cover all expenses for administration and operation of a program of registration, certification, and licensure for private security services businesses and training schools;

5. Are necessary to ensure continued competency, and to prevent deceptive or misleading practices by practitioners and effectively administer the regulatory system adopted by the Board;

6. Receive complaints concerning the conduct of any person whose activities are regulated by the Board, to conduct investigations, and to take appropriate disciplinary action if warranted; and

7. Revoke, suspend or fail to renew a registration, certification, or license for just cause as enumerated in Board regulations.

D. In adopting its regulations under subsections A and C, the Board shall seek the advice of the Private Security Services Advisory Board established pursuant to § 9.1-143.

1981, c. 632, § 9-182; 1990, c. 354; 1992, c. 578; 1994, cc. 45, 335, 810; 1995, c. 79; 1998, cc. 122, 807; 2001, c. 844; 2009, c. 375; 2013, c. 69; 2014, c. 32; 2024, c. 367.

  Previous section
Next section  
 Article 4 Contents