AUBURN – The Twin Cities’ emergency dispatch center joined the Lewiston and Auburn Police departments in getting national accreditation this spring.

The Lewiston-Auburn 911 Communications Center was recognized by the Commission on Accreditation for Law Enforcement Agencies Inc. in March after a three-month review of its administration, operations, policy, procedure and support services standards.

To qualify, agencies must develop a set of written rules that define authority, responsibility and performance and then create methods to follow up, audit and manage their jobs according to those rules.

Those standards are designed to help prevent and control crime, make the center more effective and efficient and help employees cooperate with other agencies. It also helps protect them from lawsuits and reduces the cities’ liability insurance as well.

According to CALEA standards, the L-A 911 Center met or complied with 202 standards and completed an agencywide self-evaluation that culminated in a review by a team of outside assessors. The accreditation of the Lewiston-Auburn 911 Communication Center is for three years. The center is the first in Maine and New England to be nationally accredited.

Lewiston has been an accredited police department, according to CALEA standards, since 1995. Auburn received accreditation in 2008.