County staff outline draft AI policy, website ADA refresh and HR compensation timeline

At the Feb. 3 Natrona County commissioners meeting, county staff described a drafted countywide artificial intelligence policy, plans to refresh the county website for ADA compliance and a multi-phase compensation study.

On AI, staff said a small focus group drafted a policy that would require employee training, an acknowledgement that employees understand the policy, and a governance review of tools in use to mitigate security and data risks. "At the very least, we're going to have a training component for employees and staff so they know what the guidelines are and how to use AI responsibly," the presenter said, adding the goal is to augment county employees rather than replace them.

Staff noted the policy will include a review of AI tools to assess security implications and the risk of incorrect outputs (referred to in discussion as "hallucination"). Commissioners asked whether the county would standardize on a single AI vendor; staff said each tool will be reviewed and guidance provided on which meet security and governance standards.

On IT and accessibility, staff said the county hopes to relaunch a refreshed website in April or May and will include an ADA-compliance sweep for site content and PDFs (items such as screen-reader compatibility and color contrast). The county also reported near-completion of an M365 migration, with two offices still to be deployed by the end of March.

Human resources staff said the Baker Tilly compensation and market study has completed data collection and scoring phases and will deliver recommendations in March; staff also flagged a 12-month benefits variance that has driven an approximately $1.4 million deficit in benefit spending (about an 18% variance). The county will present a more detailed HR report to commissioners, including turnover and utilization metrics.