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What is NPEA?

The Northwest Polygraph Examiners Association was organized in 1962 under another name to address polygraph legislation proposed in the State of Washington. In the fall of 1967, facing dwindling membership, five remaining members met in Yakima. They changed the name from Washington State Polygraph Association to Northwest Polygraph Examiners Association (NPEA), and then sent invitations to examiners in Oregon, Idaho, Montana, Alaska, Nevada, and western Canada.

NPEA kept growing, at times achieving the biggest membership of any regional polygraph association in the United States. Since inception, five-day summer seminars have been held at various locations on the West Coast and have traditionally featured a nationally known speaker in addition to presentations made by members. Winter weekend seminars were added in the early 1990s. In the early 2000s the NPEA began offering training for sex offender testing, to meet standards imposed for certification by the American Polygraph Association.

Membership has always consisted of a mix of law enforcement and private examiners from the region. Law enforcement examiners work with police investigators, while private examiners provide services to attorneys handling criminal defense and to parole and probation officers who monitor convicted sex offenders. All members, law enforcement and private, have repeatedly found value in meeting other examiners, sharing experiences and techniques, and being able to put a face and personality with a name.

In addition to our own social and professional Forums (closed to anyone not an NPEA member), NPEA also hosts a Facebook discussion page. Although anyone can view the general Facebook page, the Facebook discussions are closed to anyone who has not been accepted as a member of the Facebook NPEA group. It's a simple process to apply for group membership on Facebook, and current NPEA members will be accepted routinely, but anyone else will need to establish to the satisfaction of the group administrators that they are associated with the polygraph profession. 

To download a PDF copy of the NPEA by-laws, click here --> ByLaws Procedures Revised Approved June 2023.pdf