Cerritos Council Moves to Open Public Comments on City Social Media, Directs Staff to Update Policy

The Cerritos City Council voted unanimously to begin opening public comment on the city’s social media platforms, contingent on staff updating the digital communications policy and returning with a report on moderation procedures and training.

Drew Schneider and Scott Harvey of the Communications & Marketing Division presented an overview of the city's social media growth, current practice of disabling comments, and examples of recent high‑performing posts. Councilmembers discussed First Amendment obligations, moderation thresholds, and staffing needs for monitoring platforms.

Mayor Pro Tem Linda Johnson said she supports enabling comments but recommended limited, twice‑daily moderation and removal of content that falls into clear categories (off‑topic, profane beyond constitutional protection, discriminatory content, solicitation, etc.). The City Attorney cautioned that some forms of profanity are constitutionally protected speech and emphasized that moderators will need training to distinguish protected comments from those that may be lawfully removed.

The council’s motion directs staff to update the city’s digital communications policy to address moderation rules, present training materials for moderators, and return with a timetable for enabling comments. The motion passed 5–0.

What happens next: Staff will review the policy against recent legal guidance, design moderator training, and return to council with recommended policy updates and an implementation timetable. Councilmembers requested public notice about the change and links to the policy on social media pages.