Communications panel forwards draft email-response guidelines to full council

Chair Delorco called the Franklin Communications Subcommittee to order and the group moved to send an amended draft of the town council’s constituent email-response guidelines to the full council for review.

The subcommittee’s draft asks councilors who reply to constituent emails to send factual answers, copy the town administrator or use a staff reply so the town has a record of the response. Committee member Gene summarized the policy as allowing councilors to respond individually but asking they “do a reply also” or copy staff so the response is visible to the rest of the town administration.

Members discussed related technical and transparency points: encouraging use of official town email accounts rather than personal accounts, including standard footer language that indicates messages are public records, and adding a default signature template for town business. Liz, the communications director, said the library has offered space for proposed office hours that could tie into outreach on these communications practices.

During discussion committee members cautioned that campaign accounts and personal postings can complicate public-records and ethics obligations; a staff speaker urged caution and separation of campaign and town accounts, and reminded members a disclaimer alone may not remove ethics constraints.

A motion to forward the draft email guidelines, amended in committee, was moved and seconded and approved by voice vote. The subcommittee agreed to present the recommendations at the next full-council meeting for formal consideration.

The subcommittee also agreed to follow up on logistics for proposed Saturday library office hours (the group discussed the 3rd Saturday of each month, roughly Aug. 15), and to return any final edits to the guidelines before full-council consideration.