Borough of Dumont, NJ Social Media Sites

This policy shall apply to Borough entities (defined above), including volunteers and employees who are members of those entities acting in their capacity as members.

This policy does not apply to individuals who post as individuals and not on behalf of the Borough or a Borough entity.

This policy does not apply to social media sites unaffiliated with the Borough, which are created for personal and/or commercial use by individuals for purposes other than to convey or disseminate Borough-related information to the Borough's residents, employees and visitors.

General policy. Social media sites may be created and/or used by Borough entities, employees and volunteers so long as their creation and/or use conforms to the requirements listed herein:

The creation and use of social media sites is subject to prior approval by the Borough Administrator.

Any Borough entity, employee or volunteer that receives permission from the Borough Administrator to create or use social media shall clearly state that it is authorized to do so by the Borough and that it follows this Social Media Policy.

Social media shall be used solely to convey information about the entity posting it. No personal information or personal opinions shall be posted by the entity, employee or volunteer.

(4)

Any Borough entity creating or using a social media site shall designate a member(s) of that entity to post and monitor the site.

(5)

The Borough website at www.DumontNJ.gov will remain the Borough's primary and predominant internet presence. This Social Media Policy shall be posted on the Borough website.

(6)

All social media sites created or used by Borough entities authorized to do so shall have a hyperlink to this Social Media Policy on the Borough website.

(7)

Where appropriate, the social media sites created/used by Borough entities shall link back to the official Borough website for forms, documents, online services and other information necessary to conduct business within the Borough.

(8)

Borough entities shall not use social media to make any official Borough communications to the public other than those specifically referencing the activities of that entity. Accuracy of information is of vital importance and must be considered a priority when posting.

(9)

The Borough's social media sites are not to be used for making any official communications to the Borough. Examples of official communications include the reporting of crimes or misconduct, reporting of dangerous conditions, requests of inspections, and providing notice required by any statute, ordinance or regulations. Prominent notice of this section shall be displayed on every Borough social media site, along with the appropriate contact information for submitting official communications.

(10)

The use of social media by Borough entities may be monitored by the Borough Administrator or other individual so designated by the Borough Administrator to ensure adherence to both this Social Media Policy and the interests and goals of the Borough.

(11)

The Borough has the right to and will restrict or remove any content that it deems in violation of this Social Media Policy, any applicable law or for any other reason it deems appropriate.

(12)

All Borough entities, employees and volunteers creating/using social media sites are subject to all applicable federal and New Jersey laws and regulations as well as applicable record retention requirements.

(13)

All Borough entities and their members as well as elected officials representing the Borough's government via its/their social media sites shall conduct themselves at all times as representatives of the Borough and in accordance with all of its policies.

(14)

Borough employees and volunteers representing the Borough via its social media sites shall conduct themselves at all times as a representative of the Borough and in accordance with the Personnel Policies and Procedures Manual.

(15)

All postings by Borough entities should be spelled correctly and use good grammar.

(16)

Any Borough-affiliated social media sites created by a Borough employee, Borough volunteer, Borough official and/or Borough entity remains the property of the Borough, including all the followers and friends generated by the site, and may be deleted by the Borough if it deems it appropriate to do so.

(17)

All site names, passwords and/or access codes or information or changes to these shall be filed with the Borough Administrator and updated within two days of any change.

(18)

If the person who created the social media site leaves a Borough entity, the passwords and/or access codes to the site shall be changed and the new information filed with the Borough Administrator within two days of the change.

(19)

This Social Media Policy may be revised at any time by approval of the Borough's Mayor and Council.

Comment policy.

All comments, articles and the like posted on social media sites must be civil and unbiased.

The following are prohibited, and postings containing any of the following are subject to removal by the Borough.

(a)

Profane, obscene, violent, sexually suggestive or pornographic content and/or language or links to such materials.

(b)

Images or links containing minors or suspected minors in sexual and/or provocative situations. These will be reported to law enforcement.

(c)

Photographs or images of minors without permission of their parents or guardians.

(d)

Content that promotes, fosters or perpetuates discrimination on the basis of race, creed, color, age, religion, gender, national origin, marital status, sexual orientation, physical or mental disability or any other protected characteristic.

(e)

Defamatory remarks.

(f)

References to any political party, religious belief, or private interest groups.

(g)

Threats to any person or organization.

(h)

Content that incites violence.

(i)

Solicitation of commerce, including, but not limited to, advertising of any business or product for sale with the exception of Borough-sponsored events and/or items.

(j)

Solicitation of political support or political contributions.

(k)

Conduct in violation of any federal, state or local law or ordinance.

(l)

Encouragement of illegal activity.

(m)

Information that may tend to compromise the safety or security of the public or public systems.

(n)

Content that violates a legal ownership interest, such as a copyright or other infringement on intellectual property rights.

(o)

Private contact information such as names, addresses, phone numbers, or email addresses.

(p)

Personal information about an individual without that person's permission.

(q)

Spamming or repetitive content.

(r)

Comments unrelated to the particular post being commented upon.

(s)

Comments from and participation of children under 13 years old in compliance with the Children's Online Privacy Protection Act.[1]

[1]

Editor's Note: See 15 U.S.C. § 6501 et seq.

A comment posted by a member of the public on any Borough-entity-created social media site is the opinion of the commenter or poster only, and publication of a comment does not imply endorsement of or agreement by the Borough, nor do such comments necessarily reflect the opinions or policies of the Borough. Such a comment may be removed if the Borough deems it appropriate to do so.

(4)

Borough entities shall monitor the comments on their social media sites for violations of this policy.

(5)

In the event a Borough employee or volunteer responds to a comment in his/her capacity as a Borough employee or volunteer, his/her name and title shall be included in the response.

(6)

No Borough employee or volunteer shall share personal information about himself/herself or other Borough employees or volunteers. No Borough entity shall share personal information about any member of the entity.

(7)

All content created by Borough on its own Facebook page is bound by Facebook's Statement of Rights and Responsibilities. The Borough reserves the right to report any violation of Facebook's Statement of Rights and Responsibilities to Facebook with the intent of Facebook taking appropriate and reasonable responsive action.

(8)

All Borough policies are applicable to interactions and postings on social media sites when acting in an official capacity and representing the Borough.

Breach of policy.

The Borough reserves the right to deny access to any social media sites created/used by Borough entities to any individual who violates the Borough's Social Media Policy at any time and without prior notice.

Any attempt to hack or otherwise compromise the Borough's internet or social media sites will be reported to law enforcement, and the perpetrators will be denied access to the sites.