AGENDA ITEM
TO:
HONORABLE MAYOR
AND MEMBERS OF THE CITY COUNCIL
FROM: CARMEN R. BROOKS
CITY CLERK
KIM BOLES
EXECUTIVE ASSISTANT/DEPUTY CITY CLERK
SUBJECT:
title
AMENDMENT TO THE CITY SOCIAL MEDIA POLICY
summary
Summary:
The City’s Social Media Policy was last approved on July 2, 2013. In response to recent legislation and in coordination with the City Attorney, staff prepared an amended Policy for Council consideration.
recommendation
Recommendation:
Approve the amended Social Media Policy.
body
Fiscal Impact:
There is no fiscal impact associated with the recommended action.
Strategic Plan Objective:
Goal No. 6: Promote a transparent and open government.
Background and Analysis:
The City utilizes social media sites as public outreach tools to disseminate information to the community. A comprehensive Social Media Policy was last approved on July 2, 2013 (Attachment A). Since that time, City Council authorized the use of the following social media sites:
• Facebook
o City of Signal Hill
o Signal Hill Police Department
o Signal Hill Community Services Department
• Twitter
o Signal Hill Police Department
• LinkedIn
o City of Signal Hill
• NextDoor
o City of Signal Hill
In response to recent legislation, staff reviewed the policy with the City Attorney and is recommending amendments including archiving records, expanding employee procedures, adding regulations for City Officials, and incorporating a comment and content moderation policy for the City’s website.
Regulations for City Officials
On January 1, 2021, Assembly Bill (AB) 992 became effective, clarifying how public officials may communicate on internet-based social media platforms (Attachment B). Before AB 992 was signed into law, the Brown Act was silent regarding communications on social media. AB 992 prohibits a member of a legislative body from responding directly to any communication on an internet-based social medial platform regarding an agency matter if the communication is made, posted, or shared by any other member of the legislative body.
The City recognizes that social media has become an integral channel of communication for individual members of the City Council and other City officials with members of the public. However, such communications must be balanced against legal obligations with respect to transparency in the conduct of the people’s business.
Comment and Content Moderation Policy
The Comment and Content Moderation Policy, embedded in the City’s amended Social Media Policy, will be posted on the City’s official website as well as all City-managed social media sites (Attachment C). The policy addresses among other things, media inquiries, public comments, privacy, endorsements, intellectual property use, and indemnification.
Archiving Records
The City is required to comply with all applicable public records law and utilizes an automated archiving solution to manage social media records. Social media records are archived in a system that preserves the context of communications, including conversation threads and rich media, to ensure completeness and availability of relevant information when records are accessed.
Employee Procedures
When posting on social networking websites or other social media channels on behalf of the City, employees are, in effect, serving as the voice of the City. Therefore, all posting shall be in accordance with comprehensive guidelines within the policy.
Approved:
___________________________
Hannah Shin-Heydorn
Attachments