Many state government employees\u2019 conversations with artificial intelligence chatbots will likely remain shielded from public record in the wake of a ruling this month from Pennsylvania\u2019s open records agency.<\/p>\n
WITF sought ChatGPT logs from employees working for more than two dozen state agencies for the period Jan. 1, 2025, to the end of September. But Gov. Josh Shapiro\u2019s office rejected the requests in November, arguing the chats were exempt because they were \u201cnotes and working papers used solely for that official\u2019s or employee\u2019s own personal use\u201d and \u201cinternal, predecisional deliberations.\u201d<\/p>\n
Pennsylvania\u2019s independent Office of Open Records, which oversees appeals to denied public records requests, largely sided with the administration in a decision issued last month.<\/p>\n
That decision reveals a potential gap in Pennsylvania\u2019s public records law. And transparency advocates say it could block government employees from facing accountability in how they use the technology.<\/p>\n
But the ruling does not mean that AI chat logs are always exempt, according to Melissa Melewsky, media law counsel for the Pennsylvania NewsMedia Association (WITF and LNP | LancasterOnline are both members). Every AI chat is \u201cpresumptively public,\u201d she said, unless proven exempt by an agency.<\/p>\n
\u201cIf AI is used to create a policy, the policy would be a public record,\u201d Melewsky said. \u201cIf AI is used to formulate and create a press release, the press release is public.\u201d<\/p>\n
In Washington, which has a more robust public records law than Pennsylvania, a reporter at public media station KNKX obtained thousands of pages of ChatGPT conversations from local government officials. Those documents revealed that government staff used the software to respond to constituent emails, generate social media posts, draft letters seeking state and federal funding, write speeches and talking points, and perform many other day-to-day tasks.<\/p>\n
Proper labeling<\/p>\n
KNKX also found that many of the AI-generated documents it obtained from Washington agencies lacked a clear label noting the technology\u2019s use \u2014 in direct violation of the state\u2019s guidelines.<\/p>\n
The Shapiro administration maintains a similar disclosure policy in Pennsylvania.<\/p>\n
\u201cGenerative AI use must be disclosed even if it was only used to generate a portion of the content,\u201d the policy reads. \u201cThe disclosure shall be prominently displayed and include an indication that the content was generated either entirely or in part by generative AI and identify the Generative AI system and version that was used.\u201d<\/p>\n
But the Shapiro administration\u2019s policy allows generative AI only for drafting materials that are then reviewed by a human employee before being published.<\/p>\n
That clause \u2014 if followed by every employee \u2014 could lead to most AI use being exempt from public record, since the governor\u2019s office argued the documents were solely \u201cresearch and initial drafting\u201d in denying WITF\u2019s request.<\/p>\n
Philip Hensley-Robin, executive director of good-government advocacy group Common Cause Pennsylvania, said knowing whether Shapiro\u2019s administration is following its own disclosure policy is unclear.<\/p>\n
\u201cFor the public to be fully on board and to have confidence in these initiatives, that would really benefit from increased transparency about how (AI is) being used and if the safeguards that the administration has put in place are actually being followed,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n
Melewsky agreed.<\/p>\n
\u201cThere cannot be accountability without access,\u201d she said. \u201cThere\u2019s going to be a struggle to have any bright line test apply here (for AI).\u201d<\/p>\n
AI as policy aide?<\/p>\n
Throughout 2024, the Shapiro administration conducted a pilot program with OpenAI, the creator of ChatGPT, to implement a more secure tool than their commercial product into state government operations. The end goal, officials said, was to enhance staff productivity.<\/p>\n
That pilot program saved participating employees \u2014 175 total across 14 state agencies \u2014 about 95 minutes per day in writing, researching, summarizing and technology support, according to the administration.<\/p>\n
Shapiro\u2019s office said the licenses needed for roughly 300 employees using OpenAI cost more than $7,500 per month total \u2014 or $90,000 annually. Another 2,200 or so use other AI tools like Microsoft Copilot, which has its expenses included as part of a general Microsoft license agreement.<\/p>\n
There was a single chat log generated during the pilot program shared with WITF in response to its record request. And the information from that conversation matches some of what was included in Shapiro\u2019s newly released Housing Action Plan.<\/p>\n
The anonymous employee asked ChatGPT 5.2 to summarize a Center for American Progress article focused on \u201cExpanding Housing in America by Reforming Local Land Use.\u201d<\/p>\n
The software interpreted the article as recommending that policymakers reform zoning laws by \u201callowing more multi-family housing, reducing parking requirements, and permitting accessory dwelling units.\u201d It also suggested a program to incentivize local governments to reform their policies in \u201chigh-opportunity areas.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cCan you provide more details about the proposal?\u201d the employee asked. \u201cAre other states successful in doing this?\u201d<\/p>\n
ChatGPT pointed to states like California, Oregon and Washington and wrote a glowing review about their policies to permit higher-density housing and accessory dwelling units, which it said have expanded housing supply and affordability.<\/p>\n
\u201cA \u2018high-opportunity area\u2019 refers to neighborhoods that offer strong access to resources like quality schools, job opportunities, public transit, and safe environments,\u201d ChatGPT wrote.<\/p>\n
Shapiro\u2019s plan uses similar language, though the overlapping proposals are commonly pitched as reforms by housing advocates.<\/p>\n
\u201cLocal land use regulations \u2014 such as restrictive zoning, excessive parking mandates, and lengthy permit approval processes \u2014 further limit housing construction, particularly in areas where demand is highest,\u201d Shapiro\u2019s plan states.<\/p>\n
The Shapiro administration, in response to this story, said the ChatGPT summary \u201cdid not meaningfully influence decision-making or determine the content of the Housing Action Plan\u201d and therefore no disclosure of AI use in the housing plan was necessary.<\/p>\n
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