State training requirements
Montana Peace Officer Training Requirements
Who governs peace officer standards in Montana, the annual in-service requirement, the mandated topics for de-escalation and crisis response, and who decides what counts for in-service credit.
Verified as of July 9, 2026
Who governs
Peace officer standards and training in Montana are set by the Montana Public Safety Officer Standards and Training (POST) Council.
Annual in-service requirement
Montana requires 20 hours of documented in-service training every two calendar years (biennial). Under ARM 23.13.801(2)(l), every public safety officer completes, within every two calendar years, 20 hours of documented agency in-service, roll call, field training, or POST-approved continuing education training credits. The 20 hours must include a professional ethics curriculum (code of ethics, sanction grounds, the current POST integrity report, agency core values, and the agency ethics policy).
Mandated topics relevant to CodeBlu
Professional ethics
The biennial 20 hours must include a professional ethics curriculum: the code of ethics, sanction grounds, the current POST integrity report, agency core values, and the agency ethics policy.
Source: ARM 23.13.801(2)(l)
Crisis intervention and de-escalation
Montana runs a state-supported Crisis Intervention Team program under MCA 44-7-110 (grant-funded and voluntary) whose statutory content includes strategies for verbal de-escalation and crisis intervention techniques, and Montana POST approves a 40-hour CIT academy for POST training credit hours. This is not a mandated recurring in-service topic; it is available training that can earn POST credit.
Source: MCA 44-7-110 (crisis intervention team training program)
Who decides in-service credit
Hybrid
The 20 biennial hours may be satisfied by documented agency in-service, roll call, field training, or POST-approved continuing education credits. Agencies can self-document in-house training, with the appointing authority maintaining the records, while POST-transcript training credit runs through the ARM 23.13.306 credit process, which requires a course-content submission and appointing-authority endorsement.
Source: ARM 23.13.801(4) and ARM 23.13.306 (documentation and POST training credit)
What this means for training like CodeBlu
Montana uses a mix of central approval and agency discretion for in-service credit. Where the decision rests with the agency, a department can decide whether training like CodeBlu counts toward its in-service hours; where a topic is centrally certified, the formal path runs through Montana Public Safety Officer Standards and Training (POST) Council. Either way, this is not a determination of eligibility: CodeBlu does not certify hours or grant credit, and agency policy, the state's process, and legal counsel govern.
Primary sources
- POST-equivalent siteMontana POST Council (official site)
- Administrative codeARM 23.13.801 (in-service training requirements)
- Administrative codeARM 23.13.306 (POST training credit process)
- StatuteMCA 7-32-303 (peace officer standards)
- StatuteMCA 44-7-110 (crisis intervention team training program)
Verified as of July 9, 2026. This page is reviewed on an annual cadence, and the date is bumped only on re-verification against the primary sources above.
Frequently asked questions
- Who sets peace officer training requirements in Montana?
- Montana Public Safety Officer Standards and Training (POST) Council sets peace officer standards and training requirements in Montana.
- How many annual in-service training hours does Montana require?
- Montana requires 20 hours of documented in-service training every two calendar years (biennial). Under ARM 23.13.801(2)(l), every public safety officer completes, within every two calendar years, 20 hours of documented agency in-service, roll call, field training, or POST-approved continuing education training credits. The 20 hours must include a professional ethics curriculum (code of ethics, sanction grounds, the current POST integrity report, agency core values, and the agency ethics policy).
- Who decides what training counts for in-service credit in Montana?
- The 20 biennial hours may be satisfied by documented agency in-service, roll call, field training, or POST-approved continuing education credits. Agencies can self-document in-house training, with the appointing authority maintaining the records, while POST-transcript training credit runs through the ARM 23.13.306 credit process, which requires a course-content submission and appointing-authority endorsement.