A. When personnel are being hired, special inquiry shall be completed, giving special attention to the details provided in the application, background investigation, and verbal responses to questioning of the applicant. The background investigation form required by the Commission on Law Enforcement Standards and Training or its equivalent shall be used and kept on file in the facility. A high school education or equivalent shall be required of all new employees. The attributes of physical fitness, experience, demonstrated aptitude, and previous training should be the prevailing factors in the hiring process. Personnel shall be free of a felony conviction at the time of hire. Any record that has been sealed, expunged, or pardoned shall not be considered.

B. Criminal Detention Facility personnel shall be at least 18 years of age on the date of hiring.

C. All new Criminal Detention Facility personnel whose duties bring them into contact with detainees shall be required to meet any medical and psychological standards required by the Commission on Law Enforcement Standards and Training. Evidence of each employee's ability to meet such standards shall be kept on file in the facility, subject to any applicable restrictions under state or federal law.

D. Health examinations which meet the requirements of the Arkansas Department of Health and local policy shall be required of all Criminal Detention Facility personnel at the time of hiring.

E. All Criminal Detention Facility personnel whose duties include the care and control of detainees shall successfully complete training equivalent to the basic jail course which is offered or approved by the Arkansas Law Enforcement Training Academy or the Division of Correction (for counties or cities participating in the Act 309 Program) within nine months of being hired. The Chief Executive shall document in writing the attempts made to complete training if training cannot be completed within nine months from the date of hire. Personnel may be granted extensions by the Chief Executive, of no more than three months at a time, in order to complete the training. Grounds for extensions shall be documented in the employee's training record. In no case shall training be deferred beyond two years. Certified law enforcement officers and correctional officers within the Department of Corrections are exempt from the training requirement as long as the Chief Executive certifies that the officer is knowledgeable of these Standards. The Chief Executive shall establish a written policy that provides that each employee shall work on a probationary status for a minimum of one year from the date of hire.

F. The Chief Executive shall require all employees to complete 16 hours of continuing education per year. This continuing education may include annual training in the following:

G. A personnel file shall be maintained for each employee by the Chief Executive or the Administrator of each Criminal Detention Facility and the file shall include all data regarding the training and job qualifications of each person.

H. The Chief Executive shall be responsible for budgeting for sufficient personnel. The governing body shall be held responsible for sufficient funding to carry all of the requirements contained in Chapter 9, Section 9-1001, subsections A-C. A lack of funds shall not be considered in mitigation because the safety and security of the facility and personnel therein rests to a great degree on these standards.

I. The Chief Executive or Administrator shall request, in writing, the assistance from the governing body of the county or municipality in order to address budgetary issues which prevent compliance with the personnel standards contained herein. If the request is denied, the Chief Executive or Administrator shall promptly notify, in writing, the Criminal Detention Facility Review Committee.