By 1808Delaware
What better way to discuss all things virtual than to do so during a virtual meeting?
Delaware City Council met online on Monday evening to consider a handful of matters related to this topic, largely led by new City Attorney Natalia Harris.
Harris began the meeting by presenting an overview to Council on Ohio’s Sunshine Law, which includes both laws concerning public records and also open meetings.
The primary focus, Harris said, was to look at public records laws in the context of digital communication and specifically on how those rules apply in the area of social media — what can constitute a public record; benefits and risks of elected officials engaging online; the gray areas between private and public accounts, etc..
The law is slow to catch up with technology, she emphasized.
A discussion also took place about public meetings and the attendant requirements for notice. Conversations that begin as innocent interpersonal dialogue between Council members, for instance, can transform quickly into illegal public meetings if attention is not paid to content.
Political activity and the City’s Code of Ethics, last updated in 2012, were also discussed.
The last half of the meeting, and the real “action item” of the night, was a consideration of staff recommendations related to public comments during virtual meetings.
The recommendations made included the following points:
- A deadline would be provided for comment to be received prior to the virtual public meeting.
- Before the meeting, these comments will be shared with Council members; after the meeting, they will be posted on the City website.
- Written comments will not be read aloud during Council meetings.
- Public comments placed on Facebook will not be read aloud during Council meetings, although staff will address issues of concern and/or forward to Council members if necessary.
Council discussion centered on issues such as the possible limit ot residency for commenting (whether only Delaware citizens can comment, e.g.); the ability to limit comments as to topics (current legislation, e.g.); and distinctions between public comments in general and those made during public hearings.
Harris reminded Council that public hearings provide more guidance in terms of comments.
Council members seemed agreeable to the recommendation, which will go into effect at the next Council meeting. City Manager Tom Homan, noting that “We’s in a different world right now” in terms of all things digital, said the goal of the meeting, which was met, was to “firm up some of those rules.”
