Unlike many other sports becoming an ice hockey official comes with a significant time commitment and financial investment. In addition to the annual certification and registration fees, a first-year official is required to purchase equipment including but not limited to: black helmet, helmet visor, referee jersey, referee pants, white skate laces, finger whistle, ice hockey skates, referee shin guards, referee elbow pads, shin tights / tape, and lastly a referee bag. The total startup costs for the equipment necessary to step on the ice and officiate ice hockey is approximately $1,500. As a result, the barrier to entry is generally higher than most other sports. California Hockey Officials Inc. seeks to assist USA Hockey's first-year officials with a portion of the startup costs. For advanced training on and off the ice, USA Hockey officials residing in California that are Level 3 or Level 4 and in good standing within LAHOA, SDHRA, and/or NORHOA will be eligible to apply for California Hockey Officials Inc. scholarships to the California Referee School High Performance Camp in 2023 and the JHP Women's Officiating Camp in 2024. We understand that individuals use the opportunity to officiate ice hockey for a variety of reasons, and we appreciate all those that officiate games. In our experience we find that officials between the ages of 18-25 often use officiating to help themselves financially through college. It is the goal of California Hockey Officials Inc. to award a merit-based college scholarship on an annual basis to USA Hockey Officials who are actively working USA Hockey games in California while attending an accredited junior college or 4-year university full-time in the State of California.