INFORMATION #1 06-21-2010Information
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MEMORANDUM
TO: City Council
FROM: Tina Allard, City Clerk
DATE: June 21, 2010
SUBJECT: Social Media in Board/Commission Handbook
At the last Council meeting, Council directed staff to add language regarding the use of
social media to the Advisory Board/Commission Handbook. Social media is addressed in
the attached Guidelines for Electronic Communications. This document is included as part
of the packet of information given to board/commission members.
If Council would like to see additional changes, please direct staff accordingly.
S:\Public Bodies\Council\Council RCA\Council Issues\Social Media for Boards.doc
Guidelines for Electronic Communications
Between Members of Council, Commissions and Boards
These guidelines apply to all members of the city council and all members of council and city
committees, commissions, sub-committees, etc. in the City of Elk River.
For purposes of these guidelines, reference to councilmembers includes members of all
other city committees and groups subject to the Open Meeting Law. Reference to the
council shall include all such groups and meetings.
For purposes of these guidelines, "electronic means" means email, instant messaging,
chatrooms, social media, microblogs and related electronic conversation.
For purposes of these guidelines, "staffl' means the administrator, city clerk, or his/her
designee.
These guidelines apply regardless of whether the councilmember is using acity-provided
email address and account, his/her personal email address or account, or one provided by
his/her employer; and to all social media accounts to which a councilmember posts.
Meeting materials
Electronic communication of meeting materials should generally be conducted in a one-way
communication from a city staff person to the council.
Councilmembers may receive agenda materials, background information, and other
meeting materials via email attachment or other electronic means (such as file
sharing) from city staff.
If a counciltnember has questions or comments about materials received, s/he
should inquire via electronic means directly back to staff. A councilmember should
not copy other committee members on his/her inquiry.
If the clarification is one of value to other counciltnembers, staff may send follow-up
materials or information to the council.
Materials relating to agenda items of a meeting must also be made available to the public at
the meeting.
Communication during council meetings
^ Councilmembers should not communicate with one another via electronic means
during a public meeting.
^ Councilmembers should not communicate with any member of city staff via
electronic means during a public meeting.
^ Counciltnembers should not communicate with the public via electronic means
during a public meeting.
Communication outside of council meetings
• Councilmembers should generally act with caution when using electronic means to
communicate with one another, being mindful of the Minnesota Open Meeting Law.
S:\Public Bodies\Boards\Board and Commission Handbook\New Board and Commission Folder\Electronic Comm Guidelines.doc
If a councilmember wishes to share information with other members, s/he should
do so through staff. The councilmember may request staff to distribute materials to
others. The communication should not invite response to or discussion between any
counciltnembers, including replies to the person making the distribution request.
This should be considered a method for providing one-way information to other
members of the council. Again, remember that materials relating to agenda items for
city business must be provided to the public at the meeting.
If a councilmember wishes to address only one other member through electronic
means on any topic related to city business, s/he can do so directly but should be
mindful of the following:
o One-to one communication is ideal.
o The recipient of an electronic message or inquiry should reply only to the
sender, should not copy others on the reply, and should not forward the
original communication to other councilmembers.
o The sender of an electronic message should not forward or copy the
recipient's reply to any other councilmember.
o Neither the recipient nor sender should publish such correspondence on any
blogs or other social media site unless it is part of an official communication
of the whole of the Council, and part of the city-managed electronic
communication strategy.
If a councihnember receives an electronic communication from any source related to
city business and distributed to multiple councilmembers (i.e. an email sent to the
entire council from a member of the public; or an email sent to three council
members from a local business), s/he should reply only to the sender. The reply
should not be copied to all the original distribution or forwarded to any other
councilmember.
If a councilmember receives listserv distributions, electronic newsletters, or
participates in electronic discussion forums, chatrooms, or on Facebook, Twitter or
blogs where other councilmembers are also likely to participate, the councilmember
should not reply to any distribution or comment so that the reply is copied to the
entire distribution group, or any part of the group that might include other
councilmembers. The councilmember should instead respond only to the sender of
any message or inquiry.
Classification and retention of electronic communications
Regardless of whether electronic communication by a councilmember is taking place
on achy-provided computer, home computer or other computer system,
classification of information as public, private or other is governed by the Minnesota
Government Date Practices Act (Minn. Stat. Chapt. 13) and should be treated
accordingly.
Councilmembers should retain electronic communications in keeping with city
policies and procedures, whether such communication takes place on achy-provided
computer, home computer or other computer system.
S:\Public Bodies\Boards\Board and Commission Handbook\New Board and Commission Folder\Electronic Comm Guidelines.doc