Bainbridge Township Officials Discuss Safe AI Use
Bainbridge Township Trustees began discussing how artificial intelligence could be incorporated into township operations during their Feb. 10 meeting.
Bainbridge Township Trustees began discussing how artificial intelligence could be incorporated into township operations during their Feb. 10 meeting.
A presentation at the Ohio Township Association conference in Columbus last week prompted the conversation, as well as Zoning Inspector Steve Averill’s interest in using AI to assist with meeting minutes, said Trustee Jeff Markley.
“I’ll bring up a lot of the questions that we should talk about, but (meeting) minutes made a lot of sense,” Markley said, referring to AI’s ability to transcribe minutes from a recording of a meeting and condense multiple pages of minutes if desired.
“You can say, ‘Reduce this more,’ and then it condenses and condenses and condenses it to a one-pager if you want it,” he said.
Markley also mentioned potential uses for AI in conducting public surveys or generating website content.
Fiscal Officer Janice Sugarman said she recently received a list of ideas from Geauga County Automatic Data Processing board Chief Deputy Administrator Frank Antenucci outlining ways to use AI safely.
“There are different platforms (like) ChatGPT, Gemini, there’s a number of different ones,” Markley said. “I’d be curious to see what Frank’s — what he wants the county to endorse.”
Trustee Michael Bates said a presentation he attended emphasized the need for training before government officials begin using AI.
“They’ve determined various uses that the government can use it for. The problem is that township officials and township employees aren’t trained, and there’s no platform to do it. So, they’re saying, ‘All this is out there that you can do, but we can’t tell you how to do it, or what the pros and cons are,’” Bates said. “So, that’s also something we’re looking for is guidance from the state and the OTA (on) how to effectively use AI so that we can use it properly and … legally.”
Trustees plan to have a more in-depth discussion on the topic during their next meeting at 7 p.m. Feb. 23, after reviewing Antenucci’s recommendations.
