F7. Resolution 5716 - Social Media Policy for Personnel Handbook.� City of Kalispell
_11Clerk's Office
Post Office Box 1997 - Kalispell; Montana 59903
M0 IT4 i Telephone: (406) 758-7756 Fax: (406) 758-7758
REPORT TO: Doug Russell, City Manager
FROM: Aimee Brunckhorst CMC, City Clerk & Communications Manager
MEETING DATE: April 20, 2015
RE: Resolution approving the Social Media Use Policy as an Amendment to the
City of Kalispell Personnel Handbook
BACKGROUND: The City of Kalispell has been actively researching ways to enhance
communication, both externally with the community as a whole, and internally within the
organization. Social media outlets have been identified as an important tool the city can utilize to
strengthen these communication efforts. As part of the effort to implement social media, City
staff has written a social media use policy to serve as a guideline for thoughtful use of official
City of Kalispell social media pages. As the use of social media by the City of Kalispell is a new
venture and deviates from the current personnel handbook restrictions against social media use in
the workplace, an amendment to the handbook is required, and is being recommended for passage
with this agenda item.
In general, social media is being implemented to provide additional options for the organization to
disseminate information about city services and events. Additionally, social media can show a
more intimate, personable view by telling the `stories' behind the news. While there are many
benefits to adding social media to the cities communications toolbox, there are also risks that can
be mitigated and legal issues to comply with. The social media use policy was written to address
these issues and provide a guideline for consistency and professionalism.
As identified in the social media use policy, individual departments will be submitting content
through the Director or a designee to be approved and uploaded to the official city pages by the
Communications Manager. Additionally, it will only be the Communications Manager that will
respond on behalf of the city to potential posts on the sites. Content will be considered in respect
to the standards identified in the "Civility and Acceptable Use Policy. This "use" policy will be
placed on City of Kalispell sites to notify users and visitors to the page of their rights and
responsibilities while engaging with the city. Identifying content that will not be appropriate,
allows the city to remove or hide posts that violate this policy. For example, posts from the
public that contain profanity or personal attacks can be removed without violating free speech
laws.
At this time, Facebook and Twitter will be the only social media channels used by the city. The
launch of the sites is tentatively planned for May 26. Pre -launch press releases and post launch
advertisements will help spread the word about the new sites. Prior to launch, the services of the
records management company, Pagefreezer, will be secured to comply with state records retention
laws.
FISCAL IMPACT: Pagefreezer, the software provider that will capture the official records
generated on social media to comply with records retention laws, will cost $15.00 per site, per
month, for a starting cost of $30.00 per month.
ALTERNATIVES: Provide direction for revisions to the social media use policy.
RECOMMENDATION: Approve Resolution 5716, adding the Social Media Use Policy as an
amendment to the City of Kalispell Personnel Handbook.
ATTACHMENTS: Resolution 5716, Amending the City of Kalispell Personnel Handbook
Social Media Use Policy
RESOLUTION NO. 5716
A RESOLUTION REVISING RESOLUTION 5468, AMENDING THE CITY OF KALISPELL
PERSONNEL POLICIES HANDBOOK TO INCLUDE TERMS OF A SOCIAL MEDIA POLICY
AND DECLARING AN EFFECTIVE DATE.
WHEREAS, it is in the best interests of the citizens of the City of Kalispell, and employees of the City
of Kalispell, that all policies relating to persons working for the City of Kalispell be
placed and expressed in a Personnel Policies Handbook; and
WHEREAS, on May 2, 1994, the City Council adopted Resolution No. 4150, first adopting a
Personnel Policies Handbook applicable to all City employees; and
WHEREAS, since then the Personnel Policy Handbook has been updated by amendment a number of
times and was last revised on January 3, 2011, when the City Council adopted Resolution
No. 5468; and
WHEREAS, the City Council has considered a proposed revision that would amend the Personnel
Policies Handbook by addressing issues on the use and function of social media by the
City and its employees; and
WHEREAS, the City Council finds that the proposed policy terms regarding the use and function of
social media by the City and its employees, attached hereto as Exhibit "A", is an
appropriate and necessary addition to the City of Kalispell Personnel Policy Handbook.
NOW, THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED BY THE CITY COUNCIL OF THE CITY OF KALISPELL
AS FOLLOWS:
SECTION 1. That the Personnel Policies Handbook established by Resolution No. 5468 is
hereby amended by adding the terms of a Social Media Policy attached hereto as
Exhibit "A", fully incorporated herein by this reference and is hereby adopted as
the official Social Media Policy for all employees of the City of Kalispell,
Montana.
SECTION 2. This Resolution shall become effective immediately upon its passage by the City
Council.
PASSED AND APPROVED BY THE CITY COUNCIL AND SIGNED BY THE MAYOR OF THE
CITY OF KALISPELL, THIS 20TH DAY OF APRIL, 2015.
Mark Johnson
Mayor
ATTEST:
Aimee Brunckhorst, CMC
City Clerk
Kalispell Social Media Use Policy
Purpose
The purpose of this policy is to guide city employees in the proper, thoughtful and lawful use of
social media communications for official agency interests to further the goals and uphold the
mission of the city. Social media shall be defined as websites and applications that enable users
to create and share content in virtual communities and networks. Email communications are not
considered social media.
The City of Kalispell values public engagement and acknowledges the importance of a well-
informed citizenry. City departments are encouraged to utilize appropriate social media tools to
reach a broader audience in a secure, fair and open manner. Cautious use of these tools can
minimize the risks associated with the use of social media while maximizing the rewards.
This policy does not apply to an individual employee or official's personal use of social media.
Please refer to the City's Information Technology Use Policies and other relevant policies such
as the employee manual.
This policy does apply when an employee or official uses non -city social media sites in the
scope of their official duties as a Kalispell employee or official.
Violations of this Policy
Violations (or perceived violations) to this policy shall be reported to the Communications
Manager and/or City Manager for the proper action steps required to mitigate the violation.
Violation of this policy is grounds for disciplinary action pursuant, but not limited to section 40
of the City of Kalispell Personnel Policy Handbook.
General
At this time, social media use will be routed through the Communications Manager so as to
maintain consistency and accuracy of content across departments. All new social media sites or
administrative changes to existing sites shall be managed by the Communications Manager and
approved by the City Manager.
Future evaluation may result in additional social media pages and administrators as approved
by the City Manager. The Communications Manager shall maintain a list of all social media
sites, platforms and software applications approved for use. The Communications Manager
shall also maintain a list of all city employees responsible for submitting social media content
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Kalispell Social Media Use Policy
and any administrators approved by the City Manager. The IT Director shall be made an
additional administrator of every social media site.
Content
Daily management of the initial social media sites will be the responsibility of the
Communications Manager, but departments will be responsible to submit content to the
Communications Manager.
City Directors or their designees with prior director approval shall propose content and provide
pictures, videos and other relevant material to the Communications Manager. Content should
be succinct, timely, informative and relevant to the social media platform to be used. As
representatives of the City of Kalispell, employees shall abide by the listed standards of conduct
below always keeping the values and mission of the city at the forefront of their minds.
Social media tools are not meant to replace conventional communication routes and should be
viewed as an additional venue for disseminating information. City employees who are
currently responsible for the city's website content will continue providing information and
adding calendar events to the website and are encouraged to refer social media users back to
the website for further information when practical.
Standards of Conduct
Employees submitting content to the Communications Manager for posting on a social media
site shall conform to the following standards of conduct:
• Be respectful of the public;
• Conduct ourselves as a representative of city governance in accordance with
the vision, mission and core values of the Kalispell City Council and staff;
• Posting personal or political views is not allowed;
• Be factual and accurate providing links to credible sources when appropriate;
• When errors occur, quickly and publicly correct misinformation;
• Be honest about our identity;
• Argumentative, defensive or inflammatory language shall not be used;
• Comply with the rules of the particular media venue;
• Comply with the Acceptable Use policy for city social media sites (see
below);
• Comply with the city of Kalispell Information Technology Use Policy;
• Comply with all laws governing privacy, trade secrets and other confidential
information;
• Comply with Montana Code Annotated 45-6-311 (Unlawful use of a
computer;
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Kalispell Social Media Use Policy
• Comply with Federal copyright laws and Federal and Montana trademark
and service mark laws;
Comments
Users and visitors to City of Kalispell social media sites shall be notified through the following
Civility and Acceptable Use Policy of their rights and responsibilities while engaging on city sites.
They will also be informed of the rights and responsibilities of the city. The Civility and
Acceptable Use Policy shall be linked prominently on every social media site created by the city.
Responses to posts made by members of the public shall be handled through the
Communications Manager, City Manager or City Attorney. The Communications Manager will
contact staff prior to responding if further information or resources is needed. At this time,
other city employees acting within the scope of their duties shall not respond to or delete
posts made by members of the public on a city or non -city social media site. If an employee
notices an inappropriate post, they should immediately contact the Communications
Manager or if unavailable, the City Manager or City Attorney for determination of
appropriate action.
Civility and Acceptable Use Policy
The City of Kalispell utilizes this site to enhance respectful communication with its citizens. Civility is an
important part of who we are as a community. As such, we ask that you treat each other and city
employees with consideration and respect while visiting this site. If you wish to comment or post
material on this site you do so with the understanding that you agree to comply with this civility and
acceptable use policy and its standards of use as an initial and ongoing condition of your use.
When engaging with the City of Kalispell through the City's social media sites, you agree to the
following:
1. Every comment or posting you make to the City of Kalispell social media site is a public record and
may be disseminated, reproduced or copied by the City or any other person without any further
action by the poster or without notice by the city of such. You agree you have no reasonable
expectation of privacy in anything you post to a City social media site.
2. Comments must be related to the posted topic for the City's social media page or post. The City of
Kalispell social media accounts are not meant for comments that do not directly relate to the
purpose or topic of the social media website or for service complaints. For general comments or
communications concerning a department, please contact the department directly by phone, email
or in person.
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Kalispell Social Media Use Policy
3. Comments must be related to the posted topic for the City's social media page or post. The City of
Kalispell social media accounts are not meant for comments that do not directly relate to the purpose
or topic of the social media website or for service complaints. For general comments or
communications concerning a department, please contact the department directly by phone, email or
in person.
4. Comments posted to these sites are monitored by City employees and, while comments will not be
edited by the City, a comment (or an appropriate portion thereof) may be removed or restricted if it
violates any part of this policy.
5. When you post you are subject to the policies, rules and regulations (i.e. the Terms of Service (TOS))
of the host site. Information (photos, videos, etc.) you share with or post to official City of Kalispell
pages may be used by the host site for their own purposes. Please refer to the host website's Terms
of Service for further information.
6. Comments containing any of the following forms of content shall not be allowed and may be
removed by the City without notice to you:
a. Comments promoting or opposing any person campaigning for election to a political office
or ballot issues;
b. Promotion or advertisement of a business or commercial enterprise or solicitation of
commerce;
c. The use of profane, obscene, threatening or harassing language;
d. Personal attacks of any kind;
e. Comments that promotes, fosters, or perpetuates discrimination on the basis of race, color,
religion, creed, sex, age, marital status, national origin, or actual or perceived sexual
orientation, gender identity or disability as well as any other category protected by federal,
state or local law;
f. Sexual content or links to sexual content;
g. Comments that violate the protected privacy interests of any person;
h. Comments advocating illegal activity;
i. Content that violates a legal ownership interest or copyright law of any other party; and
j. Information that may compromise the safety or security of the public or public systems.
This Civility and Acceptable Use Policy is subject to amendment or modification at any time. Questions or
concerns regarding the City of Kalispell's social media activity, the City's Social Media Policy or this
Civility and Acceptable Use Policy should be sent to cityclerk@kalispell.com.
By commenting or posting material to any City of Kalispell social media site you agree that
everu time uou visit this site or anu other Citu internet site uou will be bound bu the terms of
this Civility and Acceptable Use Policy.
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Public Records
Everything posted on a City social media site is subject to State of Montana public records laws
and policies regarding record retention. Any content in a social media format that is related to
City business, including a list of subscribers and posted communication is considered a public
record. As such, all City social media sites shall, prior to implementation, have a specific
protocol or utilize an approved social media archiving tool to preserve and retain records in a
format that preserves the integrity of the original record and follows the state records retention
schedule. Any public records requests shall be forwarded to the City Clerk promptly.
Security
Security of City of Kalispell data and infrastructure should be paramount in the minds of
employees as they navigate the proper use of social media. Just as with any online site, there are
security risks involved that could include damage to the City's network or a breach of
confidential information. These risks can be mitigated with a few precautionary steps.
City employees using social media for official agency interests must adhere to the following
basic precautions:
1. Read and make sure you understand and adhere to the Terms of Service (TOS) for
the host site. Pay particular attention to the privacy guidelines of the service to
understand whether they reveal or sell information to other parties. If the terms and
conditions do not seem reasonable, please contact the IT Department for advice
before continuing.
2. Two factor authentications (217A) are required for each social media site if it is
available through the host site. 2FA enables a login attempt to be verified by both the
account password and a code sent via text or to an application. Follow online
instructions to setup 2FA for Facebook and 2FA for Twitter.
3. NEVER activate "Remember me' when you log in. Make sure the "Remember me'
check box is turned off before you click the log -in button.
4. Do not allow your browser to save passwords.
5. Always remember to log -out when finished with a site.
6. Never use personally identifiable or private information on social media channels,
such as social security numbers, financial or health care information, or confidential
matters.
7. If a channel is vandalized, discontinue use and notify the IT Director immediately.
Indications that the site has been tampered with may include unapproved postings,
alteration or removal of graphics, etc.
8. Passwords to access social media sites should not be the same password as your
personal sites or your Kalispell.com access.
9. Refrain from using instant messaging functions within social media sites.
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