The National Decertification Index is a database that lets law enforcement agencies check whether a job candidate has lost their police certification in another state. It’s hosted by the International Association of Directors of Law Enforcement Standards and Training (IADLEST) and currently holds more than 53,500 records submitted by agencies in 48 states.1Montana State Legislature. The IADLEST National Decertification Index – Ensuring Accountability The point of the system is simple. An officer fired for serious misconduct in one state could previously move across a state line and get rehired by an agency that knew nothing about it. The index closes that gap.
Who Runs It
IADLEST, a private nonprofit association of state training and certification directors, built and operates the platform. The records themselves come from state Peace Officer Standards and Training (POST) agencies, which are the regulatory bodies with legal authority to grant and revoke law enforcement certifications in each state. Each POST agency controls its own data and decides which users in its state get credentials to query the system.2National Decertification Index. Frequently Asked Questions Participation is voluntary. Forty-eight states contribute.3IADLEST. National Decertification Index Query-Only User Guide
The system also accepts records from federal, tribal, and territorial law enforcement entities, not just state and local ones.4IADLEST. National Decertification Index POST Administrator Guide
How Officers Get Listed
A record appears in the NDI after a state POST board takes a formal action against an officer’s certification. The usual triggers are serious misconduct found during an administrative investigation, or a criminal conviction, especially a felony. The current version of the system categorizes reasons using a standardized list that includes felony conviction, misdemeanor conviction, misconduct, voluntary relinquishment, criminal judgment, and civil judgment.4IADLEST. National Decertification Index POST Administrator Guide
The type of action matters as much as the reason. As of the NDI 3.0 release in October 2025, the system tracks several distinct action types:
- Revoked: the certification has been permanently stripped for misconduct.
- Suspended: functionally the same as revocation, used in states whose terminology favors “suspension,” and time-bound with an expected end date.
- Relinquishment: the officer voluntarily surrendered their certification, usually to avoid formal revocation proceedings.
- Probation: the officer is under disciplinary probation, also time-bound.
- Certification or licensure denied: the officer was denied certification outright, often for a falsified application.
- Reinstatement: a previously revoked or suspended certification has been restored.
The system has a separate notification feature for officers who are currently under review or investigation. That flag tells a querying agency that due process is underway but no final determination has been made.4IADLEST. National Decertification Index POST Administrator Guide It’s an important distinction. An open notification is not a completed action, and a hiring agency should treat it that way.
Before an entry gets made, the officer is entitled to due process at the state level. The specifics vary, but the general framework includes formal notice of the allegations, a right to respond, a hearing before an administrative law judge or review panel, and the opportunity to appeal. Only after that process ends and a final order is issued does the action land in the NDI.
What’s Actually in a Record
The NDI is a pointer, not a case file. Each record contains just enough information to flag a match and tell the querying agency where to go for the rest of the story.3IADLEST. National Decertification Index Query-Only User Guide
A typical entry lists the officer’s name, date of birth, the type of action taken, the categorized reason, and the state agency that submitted the data.3IADLEST. National Decertification Index Query-Only User Guide It does not include investigative files, witness statements, or case narratives. An agency that gets a hit has to contact the contributing POST board directly to request the underlying records before deciding anything.
That design keeps the system small and avoids disputes at the national level over the accuracy of case details. The state POST board remains the authoritative source for every record it submits. IADLEST hosts the platform and sets data standards. It does not adjudicate the facts behind any entry.
Who Can Search It
Access is restricted to law enforcement. The general public cannot obtain a login or search the index.5IADLEST. NDI Frequently Asked Questions State POST agencies issue credentials to police departments, sheriff’s offices, correctional facilities, and background investigators doing pre-employment screening. There is no charge to law enforcement agencies that use it.6IADLEST. National Decertification Index
A typical query works in two steps. A background investigator logs in and enters the applicant’s identifying information. If the search returns a match, the system displays the contributing state POST agency’s contact details. The investigator then reaches out to that agency for the full case file. The NDI alone is never enough to reject a candidate. The hiring agency has to verify the match independently and apply its own policies and legal standards to whatever it learns.4IADLEST. National Decertification Index POST Administrator Guide
Correcting a Record
Because the NDI is only a pointer, IADLEST has no standalone process for an officer to dispute an entry. The action itself belongs to the state POST board that filed it. An officer who thinks a record is inaccurate, or that the decertification lacked proper due process, has to challenge the decision through the administrative or judicial remedies available in that state. If the state board reverses or modifies its decision, the NDI entry gets updated or removed accordingly.
The reinstatement action type exists for exactly this purpose. When a revoked or suspended certification is restored, the status change is reflected in the system without erasing the earlier history.
Public Access and State Databases
If you’re not in law enforcement, the NDI itself is closed to you. For members of the public, journalists, or researchers trying to check an officer’s status, the state POST board is the right place to start. These boards are government agencies subject to their state’s public records laws, and most will confirm whether a named person holds an active certification. Many states also publish their own searchable decertification lists online, and the NDI website links to those state resources from a “State Databases” section.6IADLEST. National Decertification Index Coverage varies. Some states post full lists with reasons and dates. Others release information only on request.
Relationship to the Federal Accountability Database
In May 2022, Executive Order 14074 directed the Attorney General to create a separate National Law Enforcement Accountability Database (NLEAD) as a centralized federal repository for misconduct records, commendations, criminal convictions, terminations, civil judgments, and resignations under investigation.7GovInfo. Executive Order 14074 – Advancing Effective, Accountable Policing and Criminal Justice Practices DOJ partnered with IADLEST and funded an expansion of the NDI with additional data categories aligned to the order’s requirements.8United States Department of Justice. Fact Sheet – National Law Enforcement Accountability Database That funding supported the development of NDI 3.0, which launched in October 2025 with the expanded action types and notification features already described.
The NLEAD itself was later decommissioned after the executive order was rescinded, and DOJ announced the database was no longer active.9Congress.gov. Trump Administration Deactivates the National Law Enforcement Accountability Database The NDI continues to run independently on IADLEST’s platform. It remains the primary national tool for checking decertification history, though the broader federal misconduct tracking the executive order envisioned is not currently in operation.