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Lakeway adopts AI usage policy; council schedules six-month review
Summary
Communications director presented a draft AI usage policy emphasizing transparency, human oversight and data privacy; the council approved the policy and asked staff to review and return with significant revisions within six months.
Lakeway city council on Feb. 18 reviewed and approved an artificial intelligence (AI) usage policy that requires staff to disclose AI-assisted public communications, avoid uploading confidential information into external AI systems, and ensure human review of AI-generated content.
Communications Director Jared Wise told council the draft policy is the product of a cross-departmental AI committee formed last year that includes the assistant city manager, finance director, IT director and police chief. “AI is not here to take your jobs. It's here to supplement your work,” Wise said, describing the policy’s intent to improve staff efficiency while safeguarding personal data and requiring transparency when AI is used.
The policy highlights three core principles: transparency (staff should disclose when AI assisted a public-facing product), data confidentiality (do not upload confidential resident information), and required human oversight for factual verification and appropriate tone. Wise demonstrated current tools staff have piloted, including ChatGPT for drafting communications, a video-generator tool for media experiments and a Notebook LM instance used to create a podcast-style summary of the meeting packet.
Council members raised governance and compliance questions. Councilman Kent O’Brien suggested adding a review step by the city manager for approval of new AI products, while Councilmember Sherman and the city attorney emphasized alignment with state cybersecurity and open-government laws. The city attorney flagged ongoing statewide litigation and evolving guidance from state agencies, but said current legal priorities are protecting confidential data and ensuring compliance with Texas cybersecurity requirements.
Councilman O’Brien moved to approve the policy with the caveat that staff return with any significant revisions in six months; a second was made and council passed the motion unanimously, 6-0. Council instructed staff to incorporate an IT approval step for new AI products and to prepare to update the policy as state guidance and law evolve.
What happens next: staff will publish the adopted policy, implement required disclosures for AI-assisted public content, and present any recommended updates to council within six months.
