The first phase of the agreement began on April 1, 1994 and lasted four years, when all First Nation constable positions were transferred from the Ontario Provincial Police (OPP) to NAPS.

The Nishnawbe-Aski Police Service gained responsibility for the OPP's Northwest Patrol Unit on June 1, 1998, excluding the communities of Big Trout Lake, Weagamow, Muskrat Dam, and Pikangikum.

[4] Many NAPS detachments fail to meet national building codes and many officers live in crowded conditions or lack residences in the communities in which they serve.

On February 25, 2008 Chief Jonathan Soloman of Kashechewan First Nation gave the Government of Ontario 30 days to start relieving the situation or he would pull his community out of the NAPS policing agreement.

[6] On March 26, 2008, Chief Soloman extended the deadline after receiving indication that the Canadian and Ontario governments were interested in resolving policing issues in NAPS-served communities.

[9] The Kasabonika First Nation detachment was closed in early February 2008 as it lacked running water and relied on a wood fire in a 170-litre drum to heat the facility.

[2] A Sacred Calling is an 18-minute documentary which focuses on the difficulties of policing remote NAN communities in Northern Ontario which are compounded by insufficient funding.