Dublin City Council To Debate New Rules On Their Personal Device Usage

DUBLIN, CA — The Dublin City Council will consider approving new rules governing the use of personal devices, accounts, and messages for official city business.

The new policies formalize a number of existing norms to strengthen transparency and accountability. Here are some of the key provisions:

• Transitory messages (defined as routine, short-term messages like meeting reminders and general inquiries), must be deleted when no longer needed. Record messages, which document decisions, actions, or agenda-related discussions, must be retained for four years.
• Personal device use to conduct city business is discouraged. If council members use a personal device to conduct city business, they must forward or copy it to a city email account for record-keeping.
• Records requests: If someone makes a records request, the city clerk will notify council members. Council members must then search personal devices and accounts for relevant records.
• Messaging during council meetings: Council members are now strictly prohibited from sending or receiving messages on personal devices about agenda items during council meetings. Resolution 17-19 previously discouraged this, but it wasn't outright banned.
• Mandatory compliance declaration: Council members must sign a declaration of compliance within seven days of the policy's adoption, or within seven days of taking office. The council must reaffirm this policy every two years.

See here for more information. See here for the full meeting agenda, which will take place Tuesday at 7 p.m.