County adopts generative AI policy to govern departmental use and data protection
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Summary
The commission adopted a generative artificial intelligence policy to govern county staff use of AI tools and protect personal and health information; the policy will be enforced under the county's computer-use rules.
FRANKLIN, Tenn. — Williamson County on Tuesday approved a policy to govern how county employees use generative artificial intelligence tools and to protect county data and personally identifiable information.
The commission passed Resolution 5 25 28, a generative AI policy described by IT Director Sean Cothern as governance “around AI” that preserves access to the tools while restricting their use with protected data. Cothern told the commission the policy is intended to protect personally identifiable information and health-care information and to incorporate violations into the county’s computer-use policy. “We know that AI is a very powerful tool, but we want to ensure the integrity of our data and protect ... personally identifiable information,” Cothern said.
Commissioner Barb Sturgeon asked for an example; Cothern said the policy addresses fabricated content and misuse of tools that could create false videos or audio, and it prohibits entering sensitive county data into public AI services. Commissioner Lisa Hayes asked whether the policy would prevent the county from using AI to transcribe or summarize meetings; Cothern responded it would not.
Action: Commissioner David O’Neil moved the resolution; Commissioner Megan Guffey seconded. The resolution passed by voice vote and was recorded as 23 yes.
Next steps: County staff will incorporate AI guidance into the computer-use policy and move forward with departmental training and enforcement measures. The policy includes explicit prohibitions on inputting health or other protected personal data to external AI services and outlines disciplinary consequences under existing computer-use rules.
