Police Personal History Statement (PHS): How to Fill It Out

The police Personal History Statement (PHS) is the multi-page questionnaire that starts your formal law enforcement background investigation. In California, the standard Peace Officer PHS (Form POST 2-251, revised January 2024) spans 33 pages and 101 questions across 10 topic sections, while the Texas TCOLE template (May 2020) runs 35 pages across 12 sections. Both state commissions warn that deliberately withholding or misrepresenting information on the PHS is the number one reason candidates fail the background investigation.

Last checked Nov 4, 2026.

What the Personal History Statement Is (and Why Candidates Fail)

In graduate school admissions (such as the University of California system), a Personal History Statement is a short personal essay. In law enforcement hiring, the Personal History Statement (PHS) is a detailed biographical, residential, employment, financial, and legal history packet used to verify your moral character and suitability for appointment.

Every answer on your PHS becomes the roadmap for your background investigator, polygraph or voice stress examiner, and screening psychologist. It also sets the stage for your hiring interviews, where you can start a police mock board to practice answering questions about your work history and past decisions out loud.

Both the California Commission on Peace Officer Standards and Training (POST) and the Texas Commission on Law Enforcement (TCOLE) print the same core warning on the front of their forms: there are very few automatic bases for rejection. Prior instances of illegal drug use, driving under the influence, theft, employee terminations, or misdemeanor arrests are often not automatically disqualifying by themselves. Deliberate misstatements or omissions are the number one reason applicants fail and are disqualified during the background investigation. Texas TCOLE also notes that the PHS is an auditable governmental document and lying on it carries criminal consequences.

Follow the exact formatting rules on the cover page:

• Type your answers (California POST recommends downloading the PDF and using Adobe Acrobat Reader) or print neatly in black ink.
• Answer every single item and question. If a question does not apply to you, write "N/A" in the space provided rather than leaving it blank.
• Verify complete street addresses and zip codes before writing them down. Do not use P.O. Boxes for residence history.
• Initial the bottom of every page to certify that the information on that page is complete and accurate.
• Use the supplemental information page at the end of the packet (page 33 on CA POST 2-251, Section 11 on Texas TCOLE) if you run out of room, and label each entry with its section and question number.
• Do not disclose medical or disability-related information. Under the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA), the Genetic Information Nondiscrimination Act (GINA), and the California Fair Employment and Housing Act (FEHA), applicants are not expected or required to reveal medical or disability information about themselves or family members prior to a conditional offer of employment.
• Submit the completed form directly to your hiring agency or assigned background investigator. Never mail a completed POST 2-251 form to POST headquarters.

CA POST 2-251, Texas TCOLE, and LAPD PHS Compared

In California, Commission Regulation 1953(c) requires all peace officer candidates (effective July 1, 2024) to complete the POST-developed Form 2-251 or an online portal containing an exact replication of its questions. Public safety dispatchers in California complete a parallel form, POST 2-255.

In Texas, the TCOLE Personal History Statement template represents the minimum information required for a background investigation under TCOLE Rule 211.1(a)(8) for peace officers, county jailers, telecommunicators, and civilian employees. Texas agencies may add questions, cannot delete any minimum questions, and must retain the completed PHS in an auditable file throughout the licensee's employment plus 5 years after separation (or 5 years from the last date at a training academy).

At the Los Angeles Police Department (LAPD), submitting the PHS is Step 3 of the 7-step hiring sequence (following Step 1 Application and Step 2 Multiple Choice Test). LAPD uses the PHS, a Release and Waiver form, fingerprinting, and an initial investigator interview to open the background check before you advance to Step 4, the LAPD Department Interview, Polygraph, and Physical Fitness Qualifier.

Section-by-Section Walkthrough of the 10 PHS Topics

Below is the order of the 10 topic sections on California POST Form 2-251 and where the Texas TCOLE template differs.

• Section 1: Personal (CA POST Questions 1-13). Covers your full legal name, aliases or nicknames, addresses, phone numbers, all email addresses, U.S. employment authorization, birthplace, birthdate, Social Security number, driver's license, and physical description. On the Texas TCOLE form, Section 1 also asks for any prior basic licensing academy attended (and your TCOLE PID number) plus every law enforcement agency you applied to in the last 10 years.
• Section 2: Relatives and References (CA POST Questions 14-15). Question 14 requires contact details for your current spouse or registered domestic partner, former spouses or partners (including marriage and dissolution dates and any restraining or stay-away orders), all living or deceased parents, step-parents, guardians, and in-laws, all living siblings, and all living children (plus custodial parent details). Question 15 requires 7 to 10 personal references who know you well, such as friends, teachers, military colleagues, or co-workers. Do not list relatives, employers, housemates, or anyone named elsewhere on the form.
• Section 3: Education. Requires dates and locations for high school graduation, GED, or California High School Proficiency Certificate, plus all colleges, universities, and trade or vocational schools attended. In California, Questions 20 and 21 ask if you have ever taken a PC 832 course or attended any POST Basic Course/Academy. Both states ask about academic probation, suspension, expulsion, or disciplinary action. CA POST Question 23 also asks if you have cheated or helped someone cheat on any exam since age 18.
• Section 4: Residence History. Requires chronological street addresses for every residence in the past 10 years (or since age 15 in California, and since age 17 in Texas), excluding P.O. Boxes and military barracks mates unless individual quarters were shared. For every rental, list the property manager, rent collector, or owner's contact information, everyone you lived with, and your reason for moving. Question 25 requires current contact information for every housemate from that period not already listed. Questions 26 and 27 ask about evictions or leaving a residence owing rent or utilities.
• Section 5: Experience and Employment. In California, list all jobs you have ever held (Texas requires the last 10 years), starting with your most recent, including part-time, temporary, self-employment, military assignments, and volunteer work. Log every period of unemployment exceeding 30 days. For each job, provide the employer's address, your duties, reason for leaving, supervisor contact info, and two co-workers' contact info. Questions 29-44 cover workplace conduct: written warnings, reprimands, terminations, releasing confidential information, altercations, discrimination accusations, quitting without notice, resigning in lieu of termination, and calling in sick when not ill (including the number of non-illness sick days used in the past 5 years). Question 45 covers all prior law enforcement applications, and Question 46 asks candidates with prior peace officer experience 11 mandatory decertification and misconduct questions under California Penal Code section 13510.8 (SB 2).
• Section 6: Military Experience. Covers Selective Service registration, military branch, dates of service, type of discharge (Entry Level, Honorable, General, OTH, Bad Conduct, Dishonorable), DD-214 Re-entry Code (1-4), current Reserve or National Guard obligations, judicial or non-judicial disciplinary action (court martial, captain's mast, office hours, company punishment), security clearance denials or revocations, and taking military property without permission.
• Section 7: Financial. Asks for your total monthly disposable income and monthly living expenses to the nearest dollar. Questions 55-65 ask about bankruptcy (Chapter 7, 11, or 13), bills sent to collections, repossessions, wage garnishments, tax delinquencies, failing to file or lying on tax forms, moving away to avoid a debt, loan defaults, borrowing money for a gambling debt, spending money for illegal purposes, or missing a court-ordered payment like child support, alimony, or restitution. Texas TCOLE also asks if you have ever had an employment bond refused or written three or more bad checks in a one-year period.
• Section 8: Legal. Question 66 covers Government Code section 1029(a) statutory felony and decertification disqualifiers. Questions 67-77 cover all detentions, arrests, indictments, charges, convictions, diversion programs, juvenile court appearances, civil lawsuits, police calls to your home, Child Protective Services referrals, restraining orders, and false insurance or assistance claims. Question 78 lists 27 misdemeanor acts committed within the past 7 years (excluding acts before age 15), and Question 79 lists 24 felony acts committed at any time in your life. You must disclose involvement in these acts even if you were never caught or if a court sealed or relieved you from reporting the arrest. Questions 80-83 cover illegal drug use, drug activities (sold, manufactured, purchased, furnished, cultivated, carried), and associating with drug users over the past 5 years. Following California Government Code section 12954 (effective January 2024), CA POST Questions 80-83 explicitly exclude cannabis used off the job and away from the workplace. In contrast, the Texas TCOLE form asks about non-prescribed drug use within the past 3 years and prior recreational use, explicitly including marijuana, hashish, and THC.
• Section 9: Motor Vehicle Information. Covers your current driver's license, licenses held in other states, license refusals, suspensions, or revocations, and current auto liability insurance. List all traffic citations (excluding parking tickets) and all motor vehicle accidents as a driver over the past 7 years, whether a citation resulted in a warrant or license hold (failure to appear, complete traffic school, or pay a fine), driving without required insurance, and having auto insurance refused or cancelled.
• Section 10: Other Topics / Social Media (CA POST Questions 94-101). On CA POST 2-251, Section 10 asks about concealed carry weapon (CCW) permit applications and refusals, domestic or dating force or violence other than self-defense, anger-provoked physical fights since age 15 (since age 17 in Texas), gang or extremist tattoos, membership in a criminal enterprise, street gang, law enforcement gang, or hate group (Penal Code section 13680), and biased postings, statements, or behavior. On the Texas TCOLE form, gang, tattoo, and violence questions sit at the end of Section 9, while Section 10 requires listing every social media site, blog, website URL, and username you have created.

Pre-PHS Document & Contact Gathering Checklist

Gather your official records and contact lists before you type a single line on the form. Based on the Texas TCOLE Required Documents list and the California POST Background Investigation Manual (revised December 2025), here is the pre-PHS preparation checklist our team built:

• Identity and Citizenship Records: Original certified copy of your birth certificate (not a photocopy), Social Security card, valid driver's license, and original certified naturalization papers (if applicable).
• Education Proof: High school diploma or GED certificate, and sealed original certified transcripts from every college or university attended. California POST Regulation 1953(e) requires official transcripts to verify education. A photocopy of a college diploma is not accepted as proof in a POST audit.
• Military and Academy Records: Unredacted copy of your DD-214 (showing Character of Service and Re-entry Code 1-4), Selective Service registration proof, and any prior peace officer academy certificates, POST Profile, or TCOLE PID and firearms qualification records (within the last 12 months in Texas).
• Driving and Insurance Records: Current proof of automobile liability insurance (showing policy number and expiration date) for every vehicle you drive, plus a copy of your official state DMV driving record so your 7-year ticket and accident dates match state files.
• Credit and Financial Records: A copy of your consumer credit report to verify exact dates and balances on any past-due accounts, collections, garnishments, student loans, or bankruptcies, plus monthly totals for your disposable income and living expenses.
• Court and Legal Documents: Certified court dispositions, police report numbers, and dates for any arrests, citations, civil lawsuits, restraining orders, or marriage dissolutions (divorce decrees).
• Residence, Employment & Reference Directory: Complete street addresses, dates, and contact details (phone and email) for 10 years of landlords and housemates, all past employers (with supervisor and two co-workers per job plus 30-day unemployment gaps), immediate family members, and 7 to 10 personal references.

What Investigators Verify and How the PHS Resurfaces

LAPD's background investigation checks employment, police, financial, education, and military records, and includes interviews with family members, neighbors, supervisors, co-workers, and friends. During California POST compliance inspections (Chapter 6 of the POST Background Investigation Manual), background files are organized into Tabs A through N, verifying DOJ/FBI fingerprints, DOJ firearms clearance, DMV driving records, local LE records, credit records, education, age/citizenship, military history, marriage dissolution, employment, references/social media, and neighborhood checks. California POST Commission Regulation 1953(b) requires background investigators to evaluate candidates across 10 Background Investigation Dimensions grouped into Moral Character, Handling Stress and Adversity, Work Habits, Interactions with Others, and Intellectually-Based Abilities.

Investigators also ask your primary references, co-workers, landlords, and neighbors for the names of other people who know you, and interview those "developed" or secondary references. Under California's Bias Assessment Framework (implemented August 2022 under Commission Regulation 1955) and the California Law Enforcement Accountability Reform (CLEAR) Act (Penal Code sections 13680-13683, effective January 1, 2023), investigators check social media accounts and interview diverse third-party references to identify any history of explicit or implicit bias. Under the CLEAR Act, agencies must deny peace officer employment if a candidate engaged in hate group membership, hate group activity, or advocacy of public expressions of hate in the past 7 years and since age 18.

In Chapter 4 of the California POST manual, the investigator begins with Step 3 (Document Analysis), reviewing your PHS for timeline gaps or vague explanations, and then brings you in for Step 4 (The Initial Background Interview). During Step 7 (Detection of Deception Examinations, such as a polygraph or Computer Voice Stress Analyzer) and Step 6 (The Investigative Process), examiners and investigators compare your test results and reference interviews against your PHS. Unreported incidents trigger a Step 8 Discrepancy Interview.

After a Conditional Offer of Employment (COE), your PHS and the background narrative report go to the screening psychologist. Six of the ten POST Background Investigation Dimensions (Integrity, Impulse Control, Substance Abuse/Risk-Taking, Stress Tolerance, Conscientiousness, and Decision-Making/Judgment) overlap directly with the POST Psychological Screening Dimensions.

Your background history also shapes your selection interviews. Under POST Regulation 1952, the California POST oral interview evaluates six mandated factors: experience, problem solving ability, communication skills, interest/motivation, interpersonal skills, and community involvement/awareness. When panelists ask police oral board questions about a mistake at work or a workplace conflict, your spoken answers must align with your documented file. To organize your timeline for both the paperwork and the panel, follow our 4-week police oral board preparation plan.

Practice Question: Explaining a PHS Disclosure Out Loud

In both the Initial Background Interview and the oral board, you will be asked to explain past mistakes without making excuses. Both the LAPD Background Standards (Maturity & Discipline and Honesty/Integrity) and the California POST Background Investigation Dimensions list "blaming others," "making excuses," and "minimizing past mistakes" as negative indicators.

Question: On Question 29 of your Personal History Statement, you disclosed that you received a written warning at a previous job two years ago. Walk us through what happened, how you responded at the time, and what you do differently now.

Example answer (written by Ten-Four as a model, not from a real candidate): Two years ago, while working as a night-shift warehouse lead at a regional distribution center, I received a written warning for failing to complete a mandatory forklift safety checklist before starting a shift. We were short-staffed by two people that night, and I rushed straight into unloading pallets to keep our outbound trucks on schedule. My supervisor audited the clipboards an hour into the shift, saw my log was blank, and wrote me up for violating company safety policy. At the time, I did not make excuses about being short-staffed. I signed the written warning, apologized to my supervisor, and pulled the forklift out of service for 10 minutes to complete the inspection properly. That warning taught me that cutting a procedural corner to save 5 minutes puts people and equipment at risk. After that night, I built a habit of arriving 10 minutes before clock-in so I could stage my inspection sheet first thing, regardless of how backed up the dock was. In the 24 months since that incident, I have passed every safety audit with zero violations and was asked by my manager last year to train new hires on pre-shift inspections.

Why it works: This answer aligns with the California POST Background Investigation Dimensions (Integrity, Conscientiousness, and Accepting Responsibility for Mistakes) and the LAPD Background Standards. It states the date, employer, and exact infraction without minimizing the mistake or blaming the staffing shortage, shows immediate accountability to the supervisor, and demonstrates a concrete, verifiable change in behavior over the following two years.

Practice this out loud. Ten-Four is AI oral board practice: its panel asks you these questions out loud and follows up on what you missed. You get a 1 to 5 score with the points you made and missed, and a dated plan up to your board. 7 days free. Start a police mock board

FAQ

Will prior drug use, a traffic ticket, or an arrest automatically disqualify me on my PHS?

Usually not by itself. Both California POST Form 2-251 and the Texas TCOLE PHS state that there are very few automatic bases for rejection, and that prior drug use, DUI, theft, employee terminations, or misdemeanor arrests are often not automatically disqualifying. However, deliberately withholding or misrepresenting those facts is the number one reason candidates are disqualified.

Who can I list as personal references on the police Personal History Statement?

Both California POST Form 2-251 (Question 15) and the Texas TCOLE PHS (Section 2.L) require you to list 7 to 10 people who know you well, such as close personal friends, family friends, teachers, military colleagues, or co-workers. You are not allowed to include relatives, employers, housemates, or anyone else already listed elsewhere on the form.

How far back do I need to list residences and jobs on the PHS?

For residences and housemates, you must list the last 10 years (or since age 15 on California POST 2-251, and since age 17 on the Texas TCOLE PHS). For employment, California POST 2-251 requires every job you have ever held (including part-time, temporary, self-employment, and volunteer work) plus any unemployment gaps over 30 days, while Texas TCOLE requires all jobs and 30-day unemployment gaps from the last 10 years.

Do I have to report sealed or expunged records and undetected crimes on the PHS?

Yes. Unless specifically exempted by state or federal law (California POST recommends consulting an attorney before omitting any arrest or detention), you must report all detentions, arrests, convictions, and diversion programs. Furthermore, both California POST (Questions 78 and 79) and Texas TCOLE require you to disclose involvement in listed misdemeanor acts from the past 7 years and lifetime felony acts even if you were never caught or if a law relieved you from reporting the resulting arrest or conviction.

How does California POST 2-251 treat cannabis use compared to the Texas TCOLE PHS?

Following California Government Code section 12954 (effective January 2024), California POST Form 2-251 (Questions 80-83) explicitly excludes the use of cannabis off the job and away from the workplace when asking about drug use in the past 6 months, prior recreational drug use, and associating with drug users. In contrast, the Texas TCOLE PHS explicitly includes marijuana, hashish, and THC in its 3-year and prior drug use disclosures.

Do I have to disclose medical conditions or disabilities on the Personal History Statement?

No. Under the federal Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA), the Genetic Information Nondiscrimination Act (GINA), and the California Fair Employment and Housing Act (FEHA), applicants are not expected or required to reveal any medical or disability-related information on the PHS prior to receiving a conditional offer of employment.

Related guides

• Police Interview Questions
• All guides

Official sources

• CA POST Form 2-251: Personal History Statement - Peace Officer (Rev. 1/2024)
• CA POST Background Investigation Manual: Guidelines for the Investigator (Rev. 12/2025)
• CA POST Peace Officer Candidate Selection Standards (Regulations 1950-1955)
• CA POST Background / Hiring Forms
• Texas TCOLE Personal History Statement Template (05/01/2020)
• Texas TCOLE Forms and Applications
• JoinLAPD: Step 3 Personal History Statement (PHS)
• JoinLAPD: Qualifications and Background Standards
• Ten-Four is not affiliated with any police or fire department, civil service commission, POST, or testing company.

---

Ten-Four is not affiliated with any police or fire department, civil service commission, POST, or testing company.