Calvert County commissioners voted Jan. 14 to approve a countywide artificial intelligence (AI) use policy and create an AI advisory committee to oversee responsible deployment of generative and other AI tools across county departments.

The committee will advise the county administrator on AI initiatives, recommend training and governance, and evaluate specific tools after cybersecurity screening. The board voted unanimously to adopt the policy and establish the committee.

Why it matters: County staff said AI has the potential to increase productivity, improve service delivery and cut costs, but it also presents privacy, security and fairness risks that require governance, training and human oversight.

Technology services leadership described the policy as a two‑part structure: an internal use policy that sets rules and a recurring advisory committee that will evaluate tools and use cases. The policy includes a risk matrix to guide permissible inputs (public versus sensitive data), requires cyber security vetting before wider adoption, and calls for “human‑in‑the‑loop” review for outputs used in decision‑making.

Technology staff said the county is already using some AI tools (including licensed ChatGPT instances in pilot form), and that buying managed licenses would increase logging and control. The committee will include representatives from the county administrator’s office, legal, human resources, communications, and technology services; subject‑matter experts would join meetings as needed. The policy requires mandatory training for staff granted AI access.

During discussion commissioners asked about workforce impacts, safeguards for residents’ data and how appeals among department heads, HR and the county administrator would be resolved. County administrators said finance and budgeting present among the largest potential efficiency gains.

The motion to approve the AI policy and establish the advisory committee passed on voice vote. Staff will begin committee recruitment and a phased rollout of training and vetted tools.