Police and Fire Commission

POLICE AND FIRE COMMISSION MINUTES January 24, 2024 at 5:30 PM 303 Mansion Street Mauston, WI 1. Call to Order/Roll Call- The Police and Fire Commission met on January 24, 2024, in the Council Chambers of Mauston City Hall. Chair McGuire called the meeting to order at 5:33 p.m. Members present were Jack Hammer, Bill Jones, Brian McGuire, and Katie Gruman. Absent was Gary Purvis. Also present are Police Chief Mike Zilisch, Assistant Fire Chief Brent Lenorud, and McMahon representatives Gerry Kudek and Jeff Roemer. 2. Minutes- Purvis/Jones to approve the Minutes of the December 20, 2023 meeting. Motion carried. 3. Financial Report- McGuire/Jones to approve the Financial Report as presented. Motion carried by voice vote. 4. Fire Administration December Report-. The calls for service in December 2023 were reviewed and explained. Kudek and Roemer presented a report to the PFC on behalf of McMahon which reviewed the work done so far as well as what they would be working on in the future. Some items that they have done so far include gaining access to the Fire Station and the computer system, reviewing budget documents, setting up procedures for after-calls, reviewing current job descriptions, attending Fire Department meetings, and addressing fire inspection issues. Some next steps for them include reviewing Rules and Regulations and Standard Operating Procedures for compliance and best practices, filling open officer positions, determining what training has been done to plan future training, and setting up a procedure for pay for non-call time (paperwork completion). McGuire/Hammer to approve the Fire Administration report. Motion carried on voice vote. 5. Police Chief's December Report- The December 2023 statistical reports were reviewed and explained. The total calls for service in December 2022 were 1205 while in December 2023, there were 1157. Last month, there were 1090 calls. Chief Zilisch reported that the Standard Operating Procedures were being reviewed and year-end reports were being completed.Jones/Purvis to approve the Police Chief’s report. Motion carried by voice vote. Note – Chief Zilisch left the meeting at 6:09 pm. 6. Fire Department Members' Concerns- Several members of the Fire Department shared concerns that they had regarding the involvement of and work being done by McMahon during the transition between when Chief Hale resigned as Chief and when a new Chief will be hired. They asked for more transparency from the PFC and McMahon regarding what the purpose was for hiring McMahon and what the specific goals were. Kudek and Roemer explained that their overall goal was to review policies, procedures, and practices to make sure that the Fire Department is in compliance with the law and best practices and to have any updates in place before a new Chief is hired. The PFC will ask that the monthly report from McMahon be included in the PFC Agenda. The PFC thanked the firefighters for bringing their concerns to the PFC to maintain open communication. 7. Adjourn- Hammer/Purvis to adjourn – motion carried by voice vote – meeting adjourned at 6:27 p.m.Next meeting – February 22, 2024, at 5:30 pm at City Hall. _________________________________ ____________________________ Committee Chair Date