Not so easy to tell from that photo, but it does look dead. How did it lose its last lot of leaves?

I cut them off because they turned brown.

Is there a way to test it if it is dead?

It's normal for Cycas species to drop old leaves before they get a flush of new leaves. But it doesn't take anything near a year for that to happen. You could check to see if the plant is still firm in the ground. How long has it been there? An established plant would be firmly anchored to the ground. You could pull at the stubs of the fronds to see if they come out. If they do that suggests the top is rotting. But without knowing any of the history of the plant, what's been done to it, environment it's in, etc., it's still a bit difficult to make a proper assessment.

The fronds are firmly attached to the plant. It was planted about 1 1/2 year ago in zone 9 area facing west with at least 4-6 hrs sun each day. I have one growing good next to the other side of the front entry. Not sure why this one stop growing.

Can I speed up the leaves to grow if it is not dead?

I don't know of any method but I doubt it. It would appear that something was wrong right from the start. Cycads can take a while to die, the leaves don't go from green one day and dead the next. So I'd say it didn't just stop, it probably never started from when it was planted out. There's a good possibility there was something wrong with the plant when you got it.

I guess I will have to replace it. Thank you for the great info.

Not too hasty… It is not that uncommon for some cycads to go into a funk and not throw a new set of leaves for years.. I have a C revoluta I got from a friend that sat leafless for 3 years, then threw a great set of leaves. An Encephalartos another friend had was leaflets for 6 years before resuming normal growth. If it's firm, it may still be fine.

As stated above, I would feel how firm it is. This time of the year is when my Sagos usually put out new growth and sometimes it can be once a year. I would wait a little longer.

The trunk is not rotten. I really hope it can be saved. Should I fertilize it? Or regular watering is good enough?

Just an observation, but the plants next to it look a bit chlorotic. Do you fertilize? Palms need a fair amount of fertilizer, it's best to use fertilizer especially for palms, it has nutrients specific to them. Chlorosis can also be a symptom of overwatering, and if the palm has no leaves, it doesn't need much water. Most palms can get by on relatively little water.

Remember this is not a palm, nor it is even remotely related to one. Since it is not obviously actively growing, I would withhold fertilizer for now. I would water it 'regularly' though careful if your soil does not drain well. The term 'regularly' is based on your soil type, temperatures, weather, wind, sun exposure etc.

lol, I know it's not a palm, I guess I had a brain fart... :)

You could try using a high nitrogen fertilizer. I had the same problem, so I bought Nutricote 180 18-6-8 fertilizer and new fronds started showing up right away. Check it out!

my sago keeps getting new leaves but then they die off

My sagos have flushed twice a year. But after transplant they have sat since March with no movement except for one which has already flushed. The oldest is still establishing.

I got caught by the freeze, 1 leafing from top, 1 from the bottom and 3rd showing nothing

I have 3 very large Sagos, one is about 8 ft tall. They all stopped growing about 5 years ago at the same time. They are about 20 ft from each other. I just cut one down. The interior looks good, not rotten, wet, a little sticky / sappy, seems OK. But I assume they all caught some disease and will not grow again. Anyone have any insight? I have fertilized them etc. They are probably 40+ years old. I really liked them and cannot replace them, way too large.