Residents press council for apology and updated social-media policy after councilmember posts

A resident publicly asked the Nevada City Council to require a public apology from Councilmember Luke Spence and to establish a clear social-media policy for elected officials after social-media posts alleged candidates violated federal law.

Melissa told the council she was not questioning the validity of election results but said Spence had posted statements "presented as fact" from his official council page accusing candidates of violating federal law. She said Spence is "not an attorney" and that the posts had harmed her reputation and could damage the city's credibility and federally funded partnerships. "When false information is spread, it doesn't hurt just one person," Melissa said, urging an apology and formal policy with regular training.

Resident Austin Good told the council that adjudicating alleged illegal conduct or defamation is outside the city's authority and recommended referring complaints to the state campaign and ethics board. City legal counsel agreed, saying the council lacks jurisdiction to determine campaign violations and recommending the complaint be forwarded to the campaign and ethics board. Counsel added the council should review and update the city's social-media policy.

Multiple council members supported reviewing and revising the policy. One councilmember said the city historically used a two-page policy adopted in 2020 and suggested staff gather examples from other communities and workshop a more detailed guide. City staff (Jordan and legal counsel) were directed to assemble materials and schedule a future work session to develop an updated social-media policy. The complainant said she did not want the matter elevated to the state level and primarily sought an apology and policy changes.

Council did not take punitive action during the meeting; staff were directed to compile policy examples and schedule further work.