A study mandated by the legislature in 1976 found significant local disparities in the standards used to select or screen candidates for corrections positions. In 1979 the legislature mandated the establishment of standards, and in 1981 it authorized the Board of Corrections to contract for the research necessary to establish selection and training standards for all entry-level personnel. Phase I of the Standards Project began in May 1982 and consisted of a complete job task analysis on all three entry-level positions: adult corrections officer, juvenile counselor, and probation officer. More than 800 correctional staff and subject-matter experts took part in the gathering and validation of the data. The results and recommendations were delivered in August 1985. Phase II was the transition process from the previous standards to the empirically based standards. The third phase consisted of implementation of standards and began between July 1986 and July 1987. The tests developed for use in California are not available to other States, because of the need for security and because jobs in other states may differ from those in California. However, the project has nationwide implications in that the research represented the most thorough correctional job analyses ever conducted.