Supervisors pass first reading of ordinance requiring public inventory of citys artificial intelligence use

An ordinance requiring a publicly available inventory of artificial intelligence systems used by city departments passed the San Francisco Board of Supervisors on first reading Dec. 3, 2024.

Supervisor Hillary Ronan, lead sponsor, told the board the ordinance responds to rapid growth in AI use across city departments and the decentralized nature of the citys IT systems. "This makes it difficult for both the public and policy makers to clearly understand which AI technologies are in use by city departments and what impact they may have," Ronan said. The ordinance directs the city's chief information officer and the Department of Technology to publish an inventory and requires departments to provide information about purpose and impacts.

Ronan said the Department of Technology has named a deputy director of emerging technologies, Jane Gong, who will lead the effort if the legislation passes. She thanked civil liberties organizations, the Department of Technology and the city administrator's office for input on the legislation.

The ordinance was taken "same house, same call" and passed on first reading; no roll-call vote was recorded in the transcript for the final passage during this meeting. The transcript shows the sponsor presenting the bill and the presiding officer directing the item to be taken, indicating unanimous procedural consent to take the ordinance on first reading.

Next steps: The ordinance will return for final passage and will create reporting obligations for departments and the Department of Technology once enacted.