Commander Michael Coffey urged the FedRack committee to allow the city to participate in the Internet Crimes Against Children (ICAC) Task Force, saying the partnership offers specialized training, digital-forensics expertise and wellness resources for investigators who regularly view traumatic material.

"There is no financial impact for us to participate in this agreement," Coffey told the committee. He said the ICAC partnership, led in Washington by Seattle Police Department, provides access to training that is typically available only to ICAC members and affiliate agencies, plus occasional federal grant opportunities and a dedicated prosecutor specialized in these cases.

Committee members asked for operational details. Coffey said Federal Way currently assigns two detectives to ICAC-type or cybercrime investigations but can expand resources by collaborating with partner agencies. He described services the task force provides, including screening images with the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children and rapid information-sharing that in at least one recent tip allowed officers to intervene within hours.

Councilmember Susan Honda and others sought counts and trends; Coffey said he did not have exact historic totals at the meeting but said arrests and operations have increased this year as the department expanded its staffing. "I've had partners in law enforcement and other agencies who have had long term exposure to these type of things, and, unfortunately, they're no longer in law enforcement because of it," Coffey said, explaining the wellness supports ICAC provides.

Members also asked whether AI-generated images and juvenile incidents affect prosecutions. Coffey said AI complicates identification because images may not depict a real victim, and that state and federal statutes and prosecutorial practice will influence whether specific cases meet charging criteria. He said the department has pursued the AI-related cases it could but that some recent matters did not meet statutory requirements for prosecution.

After questions, Councilmember Paul McDaniel moved to forward the proposed interlocal agreement to the Jan. 6, 2026 consent agenda for approval. The committee recorded the motion as passing by voice vote (reported as 3-0).

Next steps: the committee advanced the agreement to the full council's consent agenda on Jan. 6, 2026; Coffey said he would supply follow-up records on arrest and caseload counts at a later date.