POLICY 33
GENERATIVE ARTIFICIAL INTELLIGENCE POLICY Revised 12/25
SECTION INDEX: Generative Artificial Intelligence
1. Purpose
2. Reference
3. Application
4. Definitions
5. Policy
1. Purpose
The purpose of this policy is to set forth guidelines City staff will observe when using software that meets the definition of “generative artificial intelligence.”
2. Reference
• City IT Policy, Application Security
• City IT Policy, Data Security
• City IT Policy, Information Classification
3. Application
This Policy applies to all City of Olympia employees and volunteers. Failure to comply with this Policy may result in disciplinary action up to and including termination from City service.
4. Definitions
Generative Artificial Intelligence (AI) is a technology that can analyze data or create content, including text, images, audio, or video, when prompted by a user.
5. Policy
The City will use Generative AI in alignment with the City’s following values:
• Open: The City is dedicated to using generative AI transparently to build trust and foster collective learning.
• Effective: The City values public service innovation to meet our residents’ needs. The City is committed to responsibly explore and evaluate AI technologies, to improve City services and advance beneficial outcomes for community members.
• Equitable: The City will evaluate AI systems through an equity lens, in alignment with the City’s diversity, equity and inclusion commitments, for potential impacts such as discrimination and unintended harms arising from data, human, or algorithmic bias.
• Responsible: The City is committed to using AI responsibly, ensuring that generated content is accurate and that privacy is protected.
6. Guidelines
6.1. Acquisition of Generative AI Technology
a) The City’s standard for technology acquisition applies to all generative AI technology, including free-to-use software or software-as-a-service tools.
b) City staff should use their work issued email address (@ci.olympia.wa.us) when creating user accounts to access generative AI tools online, including free-to-use software. This is critical in ensuring that City staff’s use of these tools is segregated between work and personal use.
c) City staff should follow existing technology procurement procedures.
6.2. Sharing, Collaboration and Training
City staff are encouraged to:
• Share lessons learned and success stories
• Collaborate on generative AI projects to increase the effectiveness of government services.
• Attend trainings in generative AI to develop the expertise needed to best use these tools.
6.3. Fact-checking, Bias Reduction, and Review
All content generated by AI must be reviewed and fact-checked, especially if used in public communication or decision-making. City staff generating content with AI systems must verify that the content does not contain wholly false, inaccurate, or outdated information and potentially harmful or offensive material.
Given that AI systems may reflect biases in their training data or processing algorithms, City staff should also review and remove AI-generated content with discriminatory or potential biases. The use of discriminatory or biased outputs incorporated into city products or utilized for decision-making may violate federal, state, and city laws and policies.
Additionally, City employees should conduct due diligence to ensure no copyrighted material is published without appropriate attribution or the acquisition of necessary rights. This includes content generated by AI systems, which could inadvertently infringe upon existing copyrights.
6.4. Data Privacy and Security
a) Use of generative AI tools shall be consistent with the principles and standards described in the City’s Application Security Policy and Data Security Policy.
b) Data classified as Confidential or Confidential with Special Handling under the City's Information Classification Policy cannot be used for Generative AI projects unless approved security measures and data protections are in place and authorized by Information Services.
c) City personnel should exercise caution when using data classified as Sensitive Information under the City’s Information Classification Policy as inputs in Generative AI projects.
6.5. Public Records & City Records Management
a) All records generated, used, or stored by Generative AI technology, including prompts and outputs, may be considered public records and, if so, must be provided upon request unless such records are exempt from disclosure under Chapter 42.56 RCW or other law under which disclosure is regulated.
b) City staff who use generative AI tools may be required to retrieve upon request, records of inputs, prompts, and outputs in a manner consistent with the City’s Records Management and Public Disclosure policies and practices.
Acknowledgements
These guidelines were influenced by Washington Technology Solutions (WaTech)’s Generative AI Guidelines.
History: New (December 2025)