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Commission rescinds policy blocking comments on county social media; department heads regain control
Summary
The commission rescinded a June 11, 2024 resolution that had directed commission employees to disable comments on county social media accounts, and voted to allow department heads or designees to manage comments on their department pages.
Chilton County commissioners unanimously rescinded a resolution dating to June 11, 2024 that had directed commission employees to prevent public comments on county social media pages. The new resolution allows department heads or their designees to manage comments on their respective pages to improve responsiveness and department efficiency.
Commissioner Childress introduced the resolution rescinding the earlier directive, arguing the change would let departments respond to public questions — for example, about adoptable animals on the animal-control Facebook page — and help staff better serve constituents. Commissioner Perkins seconded the motion. Discussion focused on allowing departments discretion to enable and monitor comments as needed; commissioners said the goal is to increase efficiency and public responsiveness. The measure passed unanimously.
The new approach places responsibility with department leadership to “responsibly manage” comments and takes effect immediately. No bans on comments were enacted as part of the change; instead, the measure restores local control to department heads for their pages.
