Get Full Government Meeting Transcripts, Videos, & Alerts Forever!
Get email alerts on the Brown Act Electronic Communications topic
No spam. Unsubscribe anytime.
Board study session stresses Brown Act risks for email, text and social media
Summary
Board members were reminded that serial electronic communications about agendized matters can violate the Brown Act; the board discussed adding government code citations to the draft bylaw regulating electronic communications.
At a Feb. 4 San Marino Unified School District study session staff reviewed proposed updates to Board Bylaw 9012 governing board member electronic communications and warned that certain electronic exchanges can create unlawful “serial meetings” under the Brown Act.
Presenter Dr. Teritori explained common examples: an individual board member’s email exchange that sequentially contacts other members about a forthcoming agendized item can effectively produce a majority‑level discussion outside public view, which the Brown Act prohibits. He advised that the proposed bylaw should explicitly cite the Brown Act, the Public Records Act and other applicable law; the CSBA sample text recommends adding those government code citations.
Board members talked through practical implications: do not use private personal accounts for district business, avoid emojis and “likes” that could be interpreted as collective communications about a pending matter, and, when district business is exchanged on personal devices, copy the district account or forward the message for public‑records retention. Staff recommended that complaints or personnel issues be routed to the superintendent to avoid board members being perceived as handling administrative matters.
The board discussed adding language broadening the prohibition against using social‑media reactions to signal concurrence, not just between board members but also in response to members of the public. Dr. Teritori and staff said the CSBA wording now includes a government code citation and that the board’s current electronic‑communications policy last adopted in 2018 is due for this update. No formal adoption occurred; staff will return a revised draft reflecting the board’s edits.
