"There are a number of Gazans who have been part of the Palestinian Authority security forces in the past and that might be able to serve as a nucleus for a future force, but I want to stress that is one idea of many," the official said on Thursday.
The United States is discussing this proposal with the Palestinians, Israelis and other regional partners, but plans for a post-conflict Gaza "very much remains a work in progress," the official added.
The official emphasized there is a broad agreement that the future of Gaza should be Palestinian-led, with the future of Gaza needing to be one in which Palestinians are not a threat to Israel, and that Israel is not a threat to them.
US national security adviser Jake Sullivan in a meeting with the Saudi Crown Prince earlier this week also consulted on this matter, the official noted.
The senior administration official further relayed to reporters that reports claiming the United States expects Israel to soon scale back its military operation in Gaza are "not entirely accurate."
"I know there's been some reporting on timeframes and I just have to say that it's just not entirely accurate," the official said on Thursday.
There was also a discussion in these meetings about Israel shifting from a high intensity clearance operations, which are ongoing now, to ultimately lower intensity focus on high value targets, intelligence-driven raids, and other more narrow surgical military objectives, according to the official.
The official added that both sides also had very detailed discussions about how the Israelis are working to protect civilians amid its military operation in Gaza.
The latest remarks on the Palestine-Israel conflict come as US President Joe Biden earlier told reporters that he wants Israel to focus on saving civilian lives in Gaza, but not to stop its military operation to oust Hamas.