Mount Vernon board adopts six-month social media trial, creates official town accounts and communications committee

The Mount Vernon Select Board voted on Monday to adopt a set of social media procedures and to authorize official town social accounts and a YouTube archive as part of a six-month trial.

The board approved a motion to establish an official town Facebook page with designated administrators (select board members, town administrative assistant Remington French, town clerk Heather Wheeler or her designate, and Megan Goucher, manager of the transfer station, or her designate). The board also authorized a Town of Mount Vernon YouTube page for posting Zoom meeting recordings and ordered that existing recordings be uploaded to the channel no later than the end of the current fiscal year. The board instructed the town clerk to coordinate with account administrators to ensure social content is archived consistent with state records-retention requirements.

The measures were presented as an effort to add a third layer of public communication — alongside the town website and a notification system — to reach residents who primarily encounter town information via social platforms. A board member who sponsored the package said the policies designate the website as the town's authoritative source and set guidelines for what content is posted, how posts are reviewed, and how administrators should respond to complaints.

Board members debated protections for elected officials'personal accounts. The adopted guidance for officials would ask elected members to disclose that their personal posts do not represent the town when discussing town issues; supporters called the disclaimer "best practice" to reduce town liability, while some members questioned whether the town could legally enforce restrictions on personal speech.

The motion also named administrators for department pages and allowed the Mount Vernon Library, the Fire Department and the Community Center to continue using their existing social accounts provided their posts comply with town policy and state law. The board moved to require the transfer station and the town clerk's office to stop using personal Facebook accounts for official announcements (closures and schedule changes) and instead post on the official town page and the website.

The board created a seven-member communications committee to provide advisory oversight on the town's communication practices, including the website, social media accounts and the newsletter. The committee will produce quarterly updates and an annual report to the select board. The motion included membership goals (one member under age 30, one over age 60 and at least one select board member) and one-year appointments for committee members.

The newly adopted procedures include automated archiving functionality, and board members said the town clerk will be able to obtain archive files if records requests or legal issues arise. A board member noted the approximate cost of providing official email accounts for three town entities at about $6 per entity per month as part of broader efforts to improve identity verification and reduce spam.

The social media package will be evaluated after six months; the communications committee will report on effectiveness and recommend any changes to policy or practice. The board's action aims to expand routine public notifications while centralizing official content and preserving records.