The Police Executive Research Forum (PERF) is a national membership organization of police executives from the largest city, county and state law enforcement agencies, primarily in the United States. The organization is dedicated to improving policing and advancing professionalism through research and involvement in public policy debate. Since its founding in 1981, it has fostered debate, research and an openness to challenging traditional police practices. It is headquartered in Washington, D.C.
PERF General members lead larger police agencies in the United States and around the world; their jurisdictions are often the seedbeds of the toughest problems and hardest-won solutions in policing. They collectively serve a majority of the U.S. population. To become a General member, one must be the executive head of a municipal, county or state-funded agency that provides general police services. The agency must have at least 100 full-time employees, or serve a population of 50,000 or more. Applicants must also have at least a bachelor's degree. There are other membership categories for interested persons who do not meet these qualifications. All members must have completed a 4-year college degree program.
Incorporated in 1981, PERF's primary sources of operating revenues are government grants and contracts, and partnerships with private foundations and other organizations. PERF's research and publications are targeted in areas its members find important to their agencies and for professional development. Its conferences and training programs are targeted to audiences who want to be on the cutting edge of relevant policing topics.
In 2007, PERF made news by reporting that violent crime rose by double-digit percentages in cities across the country between 2005 and 2007.[1] This claim was controversial at the time [2] and the FBI Uniform Crime Reporting Statistics show rates of violent crime decreasing consistently between 1994 and 2009.[3]
PERF organised conference calls with city police chiefs to discuss their response to the Occupy Wall Street movement during the Fall of 2011.[4]