PROJECT BRIEF

BACKGROUND

The City of St. Louis is continually improving its service provision in order to meet the needs of its evolving population. In light of this growing diversity, the city has established the Office of New Americans to streamline resources for new residents. However, the City has limited staff and systems to promptly handle the bureaucratic processes needed to serve large numbers of migrants to the City of St. Louis, Missouri. 

AIMS

Given the City’s language diversity, resources such as Artificial Intelligence (AI) and Large Language Models (LLMs) have the capacity to provide greatly expanded capacity and accuracy. Supported by human checkers, the City of St. Louis can develop a standardized approach to contextually accurate and responsible translation. This project aims to support the City of St. Louis in developing a standardized approach to contextually accurate and responsible translation.

METHODOLOGY

The team conducted a thorough literature review, focusing on AI ethics frameworks, government procurement standards, and policies related to AI use in public services, specifically for language translation. Research identified critical areas such as transparency, accountability, and bias mitigation, which were crucial for St. Louis's context.

DELIVERABLES

Project research laid the foundation for five deliverables: (1) policy guidelines for ethical AI systems procurement , (2) an implementation policy manual aligned with the San Jose GovAI Coalition and the White House's AI Bill of Rights detailing principles of responsible AI use and transparency, (3) a maintenance and monitoring plan for tracking AI issues, (4) a proof-of-concept for the development and testing of AI-powered legal document translation services, and (5) an internal AI policy checklist to ensure systems deployed are aligned with best practices and legal requirements.

IMPACT AND FUTURE WORK

The implementation of AI-powered language access services in St. Louis holds significant potential to transform how the city supports its immigrant communities. By integrating AI, the Office of New Americans (ONA) can streamline communication and provide more culturally sensitive, equitable, and scalable services. The immediate impact will be seen in enhanced accessibility for non-English speaking residents, empowering them to navigate city services more effectively.