Council adopts social media policy as limited public forum; staff to finalize implementation and training

The Miami City Council voted to adopt a city social media policy that establishes city social‑media pages as a limited public forum, and directed staff to finalize an implementation and training plan before enforcement begins. The council also approved a rewording of section 474 to clarify solicitation and promotion language.

A staff presenter described the policy as creating a limited public forum that allows the city to limit off‑topic comments on official pages so long as the policy is clear and enforced consistently. The presenter said the policy must be posted on each page’s “About” section to make the forum’s limits visible to users.

Communications Manager Tyler and other staff raised concerns about implementation, oversight and training. Tyler said it is important to define who is accountable for each page and to ensure that all administrators receive training; he described the communications office’s role as protecting both open communications and the city against legal risk. Councilmember Melinda said she supported a policy but had concerns about training and consistent enforcement across multiple city pages.

Councilmembers discussed options, including shutting off comments entirely for some pages, posting the policy prominently, and requiring page administrators to sign acknowledgement of the rules. Councilmembers agreed to approve the policy and to have staff create a rollout and training schedule before actively enforcing moderation actions. The council specifically asked staff to reword the solicitation prohibition (section 474) to exclude city departments and clarify the intended restrictions on third‑party commercial solicitations.

The council recorded aye votes from Joan, Easton, Barnes, Phil Field and Barker; procedural remarks indicate the item will be posted to city pages and administrators will be trained before enforcement actions occur.

The transcript shows discussion of open‑records implications — comments on official pages remain subject to public‑records requests, and the policy was framed to avoid deleting content in a way that would impede open‑records obligations. Staff said comments could be muted or turned off rather than deleted and that moderation actions should be documented.

The council approved the motion with the agreed rewording and directed staff to return with an implementation plan and training for page administrators.