How does a city council correctly handle a closed executive session during a public meeting?
How do comprehensive plans for land use work in South Carolina?
What do city leaders need to know about updating their business license class schedules?
These are just a few examples of topics that website users can ask SCottie, the generative artificial intelligence assistant now available on the Municipal Association of SC website, which responds to questions about municipal government and the services of the Municipal Association of SC. SCottie can also generate model ordinances and policies.
The feature is available to the Association’s municipal members by logging on to the “Member Home.”
SCottie’s avatar is a North American river otter — chosen because it’s an animal native to all parts of South Carolina, and it is known for its playful, curious and intelligent behavior.
How SCottie works
This tool uses several large-language AI models, enabling it to learn from knowledge pulled from different sources to create new, original outputs. SCottie uses a combination of OpenAI, Anthropic, Gemini and Microsoft AI models, depending on the nature of the question asked. Asking it questions is not the same, for example, as simply using ChatGPT.
SCottie’s answers draw from the Association’s large amount of website information — areas that can include everything from legislative reports to reference handbooks, as well as past Uptown and RiskLetter articles on a wide array of topics. It does not use the outside internet in answering questions. Association staff monitors questions and prompts for opportunities to add additional resources to fill in gaps in SCottie’s knowledge, meaning that it can become more accurate and useful over time.
Reviewing and verifying
While designed to be helpful, AI-generated responses may occasionally be inaccurate, incomplete or outdated. The content provided is for informational purposes only and should not be considered professional, legal, financial or other regulated advice. Users can check SCottie’s sources using the “Recommended for you” tab under each answer, which allows them to verify that SCottie is pulling from the most logical sources. Any document that SCottie generates should receive review from a municipal attorney before adoption.