Nevada Harnesses GenAI for Employment Claims Evaluation
After Nevada released AI guidelines last fall, CIO Tim Galluzi talked at NASCIO about how they’re using GenAI in the Department of Employment, Training and Rehabilitation to streamline processes.
NATIONAL HARBOR, Md. — Last October, Nevada released guidelines for its executive branch on how to safely use AI and still protect citizen data, CIO Tim Galluzi told Government Technology at the NASCIO Midyear conference Monday. The recommendations were, he said, “to ensure those sensitive data types aren’t getting out into the wild.” It was an important step that many other states are also taking to ensure that their early efforts to put AI to work for government are done methodically and responsibly.
Galluzi said generative AI is at “the peak of its hype cycle” and that people are excited for its potential to drive efficiencies in the public sector.
GenAI is already at work in Nevada’s Department of Employment, Training and Rehabilitation to streamline its unemployment claims adjudication process. In addition to operating as a chatbot that allows constituents using the agency website to navigate their unemployment options, GenAI can gather data on a claim and then make a recommendation that a human staff member can take into consideration when assessing a case.
Galluzi is clear that a human does need to be part of the equation, but says that employing AI to do some of the data collection and analysis can save a lot of time for state employees. As Nevada moves forward with other use cases for GenAI, they’ll be putting in place additional safeguards to ensure further protection of state data.
Lauren Kinkade is the managing editor for Government Technology magazine. She has a degree in English from the University of California, Berkeley, and more than 15 years’ experience in book and magazine publishing.
Noelle Knell is the executive editor for e.Republic, responsible for setting the overall direction for e.Republic’s editorial platforms, including <i>Government Technology</i>, <i>Governing</i>, <i>Industry Insider, Emergency Management</i> and the Center for Digital Education. She has been with e.Republic since 2011, and has decades of writing, editing and leadership experience. A California native, Noelle has worked in both state and local government, and is a graduate of the University of California, Davis, with majors in political science and American history.
