FPC outlines 2026 audit plan: animals, drones, ALPR and resource use among top priorities

The Fire and Police Commission's audit unit presented a slate of 17 proposed audits for 2026 on Jan. 27, 2026, saying auditors will prioritize 12 required audits tied to the Collins settlement agreement and select at least five additional reviews covering policy and operational issues.

Audit manager Sean Ratclaw told commissioners the 2026 proposals include an animals audit to examine officer responses to animal calls, coordination with MATAC and the Department of Neighborhood Services, and use-of-force or euthanasia decisions. "We'll look into that also," Ratclaw said, adding the audit will review training and whether calls are being appropriately dispatched.

The airborne assessment team (drones) audit will check compliance with the MPD standing operating instruction governing uncrewed aircraft and examine dashboard transparency and usage types, including whether drones supported pursuits or crowd-control operations. Ratclaw said the committee's public dashboard is a useful transparency tool and that auditors could aggregate dashboard data to report usage trends.

A proposed audit of automated license-plate readers (ALPR) will evaluate compliance with MPD policy and examine search terms and access logs to ensure the system is used for authorized criminal-investigation purposes and not misapplied.

Ratclaw described a resources audit for MPD (requested by Commissioner Spencer) to study field personnel deployment and whether officers are being over- or under-deployed on routine calls (the so-called "blue pile" problem). The audit will look at calls for service and whether staffing on scenes is appropriate to mission needs.

The audit unit will also review Milwaukee Fire Department resource use, including ambulances, engines and ladder trucks, to identify potential efficiency or delay issues. Ratclaw noted that new benchmark analytics and a consultant arriving in February may affect audit timing.

Commissioners discussed the balance between compliance-focused audits and broader review or "research" work that could examine best practices. The director and deputy director also proposed adding an objective to flag examples of good policing to highlight positive practices as part of the audit program.

Ratclaw said the audit unit will refine objectives and may adjust the slate as audits progress; the committee encouraged staff to solicit further input on audit parameters and to consult with stakeholders as appropriate.