City of Houston Executive Order 1-18: Comprehensive Policy on the Use of Social Media

Purpose, Legal Authority, and Policy Violations

• Intent and Utility of Social Media

  • City of Houston departments are permitted to use social media tools (including Facebook, Twitter, and YouTube) to reach wider audiences.

  • The primary Internet presence of the City remains the official website: $www.houstontx.gov$.

  • Social media is recognized as a useful tool for furthering City goals and departmental missions when used appropriately.

• Governance and Regulatory Framework

  • Executive Order $1-18$ provides policies, standards, and procedures for social media use.

  • All official City social media presences are considered extensions of the City’s information networks.

  • These presences are governed by:

    • E.O. $1-48$: Policy on Information Technology Security.

    • A.P. $8-2$: Procedure on Electronic Mail Communications.

    • City of Houston Code of Ordinances: Chapter $14$, Section $14-183$ ($Standards of Conduct$).

• Policy Violations and Discipline

  • Violations of this policy are categorized as misconduct.

  • Corrective action may be taken, up to and including indefinite suspension or termination of employment.

• Private Life and Personal Use

  • The City acknowledges that employees use social media as private citizens.

  • The policy provides specific guidelines for communications made in a personal capacity.

Program Objectives and Procedural Definitions

• Policy Objectives

  • To maintain the integrity of the City’s presence in social media.

  • To ensure all social media use is appropriate and adheres to City guidelines and policies.

• Key Definitions

  • City Social Media Sites: These are pages, sections, or posting locations on social media websites established or maintained by an authorized City employee as part of their job duties to communicate with the public on City business.

  • Social Media: Internet-based technology communication tools focusing on immediacy, interactivity, user participation, and information sharing. This includes:

    • Social networking sites.

    • Forums and weblogs (blogs, vlogs, microblogs).

    • Online chat sites.

    • Video and photo posting sites (e.g., Facebook, Twitter, and YouTube).

  • Social Media Administrators: City employees expressly designated by their department directors to oversee departmental social media. Their authority is limited to actions reflecting guidance from the director and departmental/City policies.

Scope and Applicability

• Entity Inclusions

  • This directive applies to all City employees.

  • It includes contract employees and volunteers working on behalf of the City.

  • It applies to personal social media sites to the extent specified in the order.

• Entity Exclusions

  • The order does not apply to social media sites of the City’s elected officials when used solely for campaign or personal purposes.

Organizational Responsibilities and Duties

• Department Director Responsibilities

  • Implementation of the provisions of the directive.

  • Designation of a departmental social media administrator.

• Social Media Administrator Responsibilities

  • Oversight of departmental social media tools.

  • Reviewing requests to establish official sites and making recommendations (approval/denial) to the Mayor’s Communications Office.

  • Reviewing existing sites for compliance with current policies.

  • Ensuring sites are regularly maintained and kept current.

  • Monitoring content for appropriateness, professionalism, and consistency with City policy.

  • Frequent review of interactive sites (those allowing comments).

  • Keeping the department director informed of all networking tools and activities.

• Employee Responsibilities

  • Individuals creating or posting info must ensure it is accurate, professional, respectful, relevant, and consistent with the department's mission.

  • High standards for grammar and spelling are required.

  • Mistakes must be corrected quickly.

General Governance, Oversight, and Request Procedures

• The Mayor’s Communications Office

  • Holds general oversight of all City social media sites because these sites represent City policy positions and leadership views.

  • May assume direct control of departmental social media during disasters or emergency situations to manage communications.

• Approval Process for New Sites

  • All new sites must be approved by the departmental social media administrator.

  • Requests must include an explanation of "business necessity."

  • Requests must follow the format found in Appendix A and be submitted to the Mayor's Communications Office for final recommendation.

  • Multiple sites per department are allowed if they help accomplish City goals.

• Compliance for Existing Sites

  • Sites existing at the time the Executive Order was promulgated must submit a request for approval to the Mayor’s Communications Office within $90$ days.

  • Extensions must be approved in writing by the Mayor’s Communications Office.

Technical Access and Platform-Specific Protocols

• Access Management

  • Access, login, and password information must be provided to:

    • The departmental social media administrator.

    • Departmental ITD personnel.

    • The IT Department’s Infrastructure Services Security Administrator.

    • The Mayor’s Communications Office.

  • Changes to credentials must be reported immediately to all these parties.

• Facebook Specific Requirements

  • Employees/Administrators authorized to post must set up a Facebook account to facilitate transparency.

  • Account Guidelines:

    • Must contain the administrator’s or employee’s actual name.

    • Must be created using the official City email address.

    • Settings must prohibit "wall posts" or "friending" the administrator/employee.

    • Must be used solely for City business.

• Labor and Overtime Rules

  • Employees must adhere to policy principles during maintenance.

  • Working on departmental sites during off-duty hours is prohibited unless pre-approved in writing on a day-to-day basis by a supervisor.

  • Hours worked outside the normal schedule must be reported and included in the $40$-hour work week.

  • Work exceeding $40$ hours must be paid as overtime per law and City policy.

Design Standards and Required Metadata

• Visual Design

  • Design elements (logos, backgrounds, images) must be appropriate and consistent with guidelines at $www.houstontx.gov/homepage.html$.

  • Departmental logos may be used; where appropriate, the City logo should be included.

• Linkage and Descriptions

  • Sites must link to both the City website ($www.houstontx.gov$) and the specific departmental website.

  • The departmental site must clearly state the purpose and subject matter of the social media page.

  • Facebook page "Type" description must be set to "government."

  • Facebook structures must be "Pages," not "Groups."

  • Twitter account biographies must read "[City of Houston, Department name]" and link to the department website.

  • Twitter usernames should ideally begin with "Houston" or "HOU" (e.g., $HoustonPolice$, $HOUPWE$).

Public Interaction, Comment Policies, and Disclaimers

• Mandatory Departmental Statement

  • The following text must appear on departmental websites: "[Insert name of department or program] is a department [or program] of the City of Houston, $www.houstontx.gov$. This site is intended to serve as a mechanism for communication between the public and [department/program] on the listed topics. Following or ‘friending’ persons or organizations is not an endorsement by the City and is only intended as a means of communication. All content of this site and all comments submitted to this page and its list of fans are public and are subject to disclosure pursuant to the Texas Public Information Act. Public information requests must be directed to the [department’s] public information officer."

• Comment Moderation and Criteria

  • Comments are allowed but must be monitored daily.

  • Sites must be structured narrowly to focus on City interests, not to create a "public forum."

  • Visible text or a link must state: ‘Comments. The purpose of this site is to present matters of public interest in the City of Houston, Texas. We encourage you to submit comments, but please note that this is not a public forum.’

  • Deletion Criteria: The City reserves the right to delete comments that:

    • Contain false information.

    • Use obscene language or sexual content.

    • Threaten or defame any person/organization.

    • Support or oppose political candidates, organizations, or ballot propositions.

    • Promote illegal activity, commercial services, or products.

    • Infringe on copyrights or trademarks.

    • Are not topically related to the post.

• Prohibited Information

  • The following cannot be posted on City or personal social media:

    • Proprietary information.

    • Information subject to attorney-client privilege.

    • Information protected by state/federal privacy laws.

    • Information exempt from the Texas Public Information Act.

Security, Privacy, and Records Management

• Application Usage

  • Apps (streaming video, RSS, etc.) must serve a City purpose and come from trusted sources.

  • Apps require approval per Section $6$.

  • Apps will be removed if they cause security breaches or contain viruses.

• Privacy Policies

  • Sites are governed by the third-party host's privacy policy and the City's policy at $www.houstontx.gov/privacy.html$.

• Records Retention

  • Retention is governed by Texas Government Code Section $441.158$.

  • Retention period depends on content, not medium.

  • Records must be preserved on a City server in an original, accessible format.

• Texas Public Information Act (TPIA)

  • Social media content (including subscriber lists and communication) is a public record under TPIA Chapter $552$.

  • Departments are responsible for responding to requests.

  • Accessibility difficulties do not excuse non-compliance.

Personal Use and Employee Conduct Standards

• General Conduct

  • Incidental personal use during work hours is allowed if limited and non-detrimental to productivity.

  • City resources/time cannot be used for personal profit, business interests, or political activity.

  • Personal account names must not be tied to the City (e.g., $CityofHoustonCop$ is inappropriate).

  • Disclaimers must be used when commenting on City business (stating opinions are personal).

  • City email addresses/passwords cannot be used for personal social networking.

  • No posting images of City property/personnel that adversely affects the City's reputation.

• Communication Guidelines

  • Employees must be truthful, courteous, and respectful to coworkers, supervisors, and the public.

  • Name-calling and personal attacks are prohibited.

  • Hate Speech: On or off duty, employees shall not use social media to communicate hate speech, slurs, or disparaging references regarding protected classes (race, ethnicity, religion, sex, gender, etc.) if it:

    1. Adversely affects job performance.

    2. Adversely affects the City's mission.

    3. Creates a hostile work environment.

Provisions for Boards, Commissions, and Legal Conflicts

• Boards and Commissions

  • Must initiate social media use through formal action and follow this policy’s approval process.

  • Under the Texas Open Meetings Act, members are prohibited from participating in postings or discussion threads on sites created by their own board/commission.

• Conflict of Laws

  • This Executive Order ($EO 1-18$) supersedes the version from Jan $4$, $2011$.

  • Federal or state laws, statutes, or constitutional provisions supersede this Order in any conflict.

• Attachments

  • Appendix A: Application for Approval of Social Media Site/Tool.