IT in Clark County, Nev., has been on a path to enable a better government experience for residents using technology; now, officials are strategizing for the years ahead.
County CIO Bob Leek, whose region includes the state’s most populous city, Las Vegas, and rural communities, has led with a community-driven mindset. Leek has been CIO since May 2022. Digital equity and resident services were top of mind when he arrived, and in the years since, his focus on improving public service and connectivity has delivered gains for residents.
“We constantly strive to improve the experience that our constituents have with the services that we provide,” Leek said, underlining that technology can accelerate the process.
As Clark County Information Technology prepares for the launch of its 2026-2028 strategic plan, Leek reflected on some of the accomplishments made over the last year to improve residents’ experience when interacting with government.
One was re-platforming the county website, clarkcountynv.gov, over nine months. The goal was to improve public engagement across devices. The initiative created the technological foundation for the long-term vision of “Resident 360” and “Business Owner 360,” which will put these groups at the center of digital services and build out paths to support their needs — rather than users having to navigate to find services. The re-platforming project also helps support county work, Leek said, to meet the approaching federal accessibility compliance deadline.
Officials have been making steady progress on improving digital services, but the forthcoming strategic plan is intended to paint a picture of the future state of Clark County IT, Leek said.
The plan has three primary pillars according to Leek: public-facing capabilities, internal capabilities to support service delivery across departments, and supporting the workforce by making the county a great place to work. It acknowledges the continuous evolution of technology, he said: “And the biggest area where we are putting our time and attention is around what we refer to as augmented intelligence.”
The county’s focus with the advance of AI technologies, Leek said, is to improve delivery for the more than 700 services it offers, using an array of enhanced technology capabilities to simplify government interactions. As AI tools evolve from generative AI to agentic AI and onward, the county is taking an ethical approach to implementation within workflows, prioritizing privacy and security.
“We’re not ‘doing AI’; we’re applying AI to the services that we provide to make them better,” Leek said.
The technology is advancing rapidly, and how the county applies it is informed by lessons learned through collaboration, as with the GovAI Coalition. Information sharing there has supported intentional AI applications, guided by the idea of benefits for residents. Clark County officials have taken a thoughtful approach to AI applications, viewing them as an enabler of better service delivery akin to prior technology advances.
In addition to applying augmented intelligence within workflows, Leek said the county is working to expand digital literacy and AI literacy in its workforce, to power better services.
Digital equity has been a priority for Clark County officials; Leek expressed his excitement in March 2025 about “shovel-ready” projects via the federal Broadband Equity, Access and Deployment Program, and digital literacy training in the works. However, program changes and the termination of the Digital Equity Act have caused some delays in that progress. To respond to these changes, Leek said the county is reassessing its broadband adoption and community engagement program, to advance digital equity plans at a local level amid a changing federal financial landscape. Internally, officials are working on a plan for a local-powered version of the program, to bring to the Board of County Commissioners for approval.
“Our plans are the same, but how we’re going to accomplish those plans have had to be rethought,” Leek said.
The goal that hasn’t changed is bringing high-speed, affordable Internet to everyone in the Southern Nevada region. Already, the county’s work to expand connectivity has brought increased competition to the area, the CIO said, resulting in lower prices for the public.
The county’s motto is “Together for Better.” Technology, Leek said, can help unlock county government capabilities to deliver on that promise, by making services easier to access or more efficient to navigate.
