Train on site if moving your officers is the hard part: an instructor comes to your facility for one flat travel charge starting at $1,500, and nobody spends a shift on the road. Train at our range in Longview if keeping the invoice down is the priority: there is no travel charge, and it is open to companies from any state. The courses, the $500 Security Career Fastrack price and the five-officer minimum are the same either way.
So the choice is not about what your officers learn. It is about logistics, and those depend on your company. Here is how to think it through.
What actually changes between the two options?
Only where the in-person portions happen and whether there is a travel charge. Everything else is identical:
- The online portions (Level 2, the online part of Level 3 and the online part of OC Pepper Spray) are self-paced, so officers complete them from wherever they are.
- The in-person work, meaning the Level 3 firearms qualification, the OC practical and Level 4, is what happens either at your site or in Longview.
- Billing is one invoice for every officer, paid in advance, and scheduling comes after payment on dates that suit your roster.
When does on-site training make more sense?
Bringing the instructor to you tends to win when:
- Your officers are spread across posts you cannot easily leave short. Gathering them at your own facility is simpler than sending a group out of town.
- You are a long way from East Texas. Paying one flat travel charge can be easier on your schedule than paying for officer travel time, fuel and meals.
- You are training the full path. The travel charge is one flat amount with no per-mile billing, so running the whole Fastrack in a single visit gets the most out of it.
The tradeoff is cost: on-site training adds a travel charge starting at $1,500 to the invoice.
What do we need at our facility?
That depends on which courses you are booking and what your site has available. Rather than guess, describe your location when you fill out the quote form. Most requests are invoiced right away; if yours needs a second look to confirm the site will work, you will get a reply within one business day.
When is Longview the better choice?
Training at East Texas Rifle and Pistol Club in Longview, Texas tends to win when:
- Budget is tight. There is no travel charge, so the invoice is the training cost and nothing more.
- You are within driving distance of Longview. If your officers can get there and back without an overnight stay, the savings are hard to beat.
- Your state is outside the on-site service area. Longview is open to a company based in any state.
- You are not sure your own site is suitable. An established range removes that question.
The tradeoff is your officers’ time and travel to get there.
Which states can you travel to?
On-site training is available in 38 states. That area is based on Texas DPS reciprocity as of October 2026, plus Vermont and Connecticut.
We do not travel on site to these 12 states:
- California
- Hawaii
- Illinois
- Maine
- Maryland
- Massachusetts
- New Hampshire
- New Jersey
- New York
- Oregon
- Rhode Island
- Washington
A company based in one of those states can still train its officers with us. Send the group to Longview, where there is no travel charge.
Does the location affect the certificates or the rules?
No. The training requirements come from the Texas Administrative Code, not from where the class meets. Under 37 TAC §35.141(a)(2), Level 3 must be taught by a department-approved school and a department-approved instructor, and that is true at your facility and at the range alike.
Handgun qualification follows the same standard in both places too. 37 TAC §35.145 allows it to use either the DPS Primary Issued Handgun Qualification Course or the DPS Approved License to Carry Handgun License Course. And under §35.147(a)(1), the approved school issues each officer’s original certificate within seven days after the officer qualifies, wherever that happened.
Can we decide later?
You will tell us your preferred location on the quote form, because it determines whether travel goes on the invoice. What you do not have to lock in at checkout is the date. Officers start the online work right after you submit your roster, and each one receives an account and login by email, already enrolled. You book the in-person session once the group is ready. A manager login shows who has started, who has finished and who has not signed in, so you can see when that moment arrives.
If you are still weighing it, the group training page lays out both options side by side.
Location questions
Is travel billed by the mile?
No. On-site training carries one flat travel charge starting at $1,500. There is no per-mile billing.
What happens if weather shuts down the session?
Whether you train on site or in Longview, a session canceled for weather or a facility closure moves to the next date that works for both of us, at no additional training charge. See our terms and conditions.
Can a company with only three officers book on site?
Group bookings, on site or in Longview, start at five officers. With fewer than five, officers can enroll individually through our classes page.
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