The Pros and Cons of
CALEA Accreditation
Whew! Good question...
What CALEA does is require agencies to have established policies for a long list of standardized topics. For law enforcement agencies it's an extensive list, and it includes some comm center related operations. CALEA accredits stand-alone comm centers, and the list of topics is somewhat shorter than for a full law enforcement agency.
I always point out that CALEA doesn't require specific policy wording...they leave it up to you on how to handle situations. They simply require that you have a policy.
As of September 2002 there are 39 communications-related agencies accredited, with probably an equal number in some stage of application, review, etc. You can find information on each agency at the CALEA Web site. If you use the bottom search box, then change the "Narrow your search by agency type" button to "Communications Accreditation," you'll get a list of agencies, and you can click on the links to find contact information for each agency--I'm sure they could give you some more specific advice. The Knox County Emergency Communications District is accredited, for example.
Now, the "pro and con" question... If you're a very organized center, and if you have a complete set of "Rules and Regs," and if you have a procedural manual, and a standardized training program, etc., then accreditation might not offer lots of benefits. You already have the materials that CALEA requires, in this case. The benefit would come from knowing that a national organization has "blessed" your materials, and that they represent what is considered a national standard. So what? Well, you can certainly point to your agency and brag, either to the chief, the sheriff, the city/county council, or the public. It establishes you comm center as being well-prepared. You're able to put that CALEA logo on your stationery.
Also (and law enforcement agencies like this aspect), you're arguably in a much better position to protect yourself from legal actions by having a complete set of procedures. I say "arguably" because even if you have a policy regarding a specific situation, it could be a lousy policy. I believe the CALEA assessment team would probably catch such a situation, but it's still possible your local opinion (as written in a policy) on how to handle hang-up callers doesn't match a jury's opinion. So the protection isn't 100%, but it's there.
You must factor in some pretty extensive work to make sure your existing policies cover what CALEA requires. For a law enforcement agency, this work can be extensive! I know agencies who devote one entire position to CALEA compliance, full-time: writing a policy, getting it reviewed by the captains and neighborhood reps, passing it around the city council, revising it, and on and on. And you have to reassess your policies every 3 years, I believe.
For a comm center, this work is less...because there are fewer standards. Nevertheless, you have to do the work. If CALEA requires policies you don't have, you'll have to write new ones. If they require policies for situations you don't exactly cover, you'll have to re-write your existing ones.
Now, having said all that, if you're at an agency that has <no> (or few) written policies and procedures, the work for CALEA accreditation is going to be much more extensive...but the benefits are going to be much more profound. It'll take a lot of work, but you'll end up with what you <should> have: a set of well-written, pertinent rules for all types of situations.
So, in short, if your agency is already well-organized and documented, I feel that CALEA doesn't offer you that much of a benefit. If your agency operates by word-of-mouth, CALEA is what you really need!
I should point out that you can purchase the CALEA standards manual for comm centers ($20 I believe), and see for yourself what they require. I have a copy, and I found it to be basic-to-moderate in coverage. Now, that's not necessarily a bad thing, however, for the agency that needs it. It's just that I've seen more extensive and specific rules and regs at large agencies.
I'd buy the CALEA manual for comm centers, see how you match up to their requirements, and then analyze how much work it would be to become accredited. You can then weigh that against the benefits. Oh, I'd also talk to some current comm center CALEA members. I'm sure they'd have more opinions on the "benefits" side of the equation.
Good luck!