Social Media Use Policy
Adopted August 10, 2023
Social media may be used by Johnson County departments and offices for business-related purposes subject to the restrictions set forth in this policy.
All use of social media sites by Johnson County departments and offices shall be consistent with applicable federal, state and local laws, regulations and policies, including this policy, Johnson County department or office-specific policies and all Johnson County information technology security policies. This includes adherence to established laws and policies regarding trademark, copyright, records retention, First Amendment, and privacy laws. All departmental/office social media sites or services are considered an extension of the County’s information networks.
Johnson County social media sites are subject to applicable public records laws. Any content maintained in a social media format related to county business, including communication posted by Johnson County and communication received from members of the public, should be presumed to be a public record. The department or office maintaining the social media account is responsible for responding completely and accurately to any public records request for social media content.
Johnson County departments and offices may develop and implement a social media policy to address issues and requirements specific to that department or office as long as those policies are consistent with this policy.
Oversight of Employee Activity on Johnson County Social Media Sites
Employees representing Johnson County through social media outlets or participating in social media features on county websites must maintain a high level of ethical conduct and professional decorum. The information must be presented following professional standards for good grammar, spelling, brevity, clarity, and accuracy.
Department Heads and Elected officials should provide the Communications Coordinator, and/or designee a list of employees authorized to post on behalf of the County for their Department/Office. Updates should be forwarded as employees are added or removed from the list. Only authorized employees may post on behalf of the County on official Johnson County social media sites.
Content and messages posted on official Johnson County social media sites are public and may be cited as statements made on behalf of the County. Social media should not be used to circumvent other county communication policies, including news media policy requirements.
Employees may not publish information on Johnson County social media sites that includes: •
- Confidential information
- Trademark or Copyright violations
- Profane, racist, sexist, or derogatory content or comments
- Partisan political views
- Commercial endorsements or advertisements
- Spam or junk email
- Content unrelated to or outside the scope of County business
- Images from crime scenes
- Witness statements
- Any other non-public information obtained as a result of employment with the County
Employees posting pictures or videos of workplace settings, whether in an official County capacity or through a personal profile or site, must ensure that all safety policies and protocols are followed by all persons in the photo or video, and no sensitive, confidential, or proprietary information or processes are included.
Department Heads and Elected Officials should provide supervision to ensure compliance with this policy and the Social Media Policy in the Employee Handbook. Failure to do so is grounds for revoking the authorization to participate in Johnson County's social media sites, blogs, or other social media features.
Required Notice and Moderation of Third-Party Content
The following guidelines set forth below must be displayed to users on all social media sites managed by Johnson County or made available by hyperlink.
Comments posted by people other than our organization are not to be considered the opinion of Johnson County, nor does Johnson County endorse any third-party comments on this page. Likes, comments, and shares by Johnson County are not a means of endorsement.
Johnson County social media sites serve as a limited public forum and all content published is subject to monitoring. User-generated posts may be rejected or removed when the content:
- is off-subject or out of context
- contains obscenity or material that appeals to the prurient interest
- contains sensitive personal information • contains offensive terms that target protected classes
- is threatening, harassing, or discriminatory
- incites or promotes violence or illegal activities
- contains information that reasonably could compromise individual or public safety
- contains private information related to an ongoing criminal or civil case
- advertises or promotes a commercial product or service, or any entity or individual
- promotes or endorses political campaigns or candidates
Persistent violations could result in being blocked from this page/site.
Any submission, including deleted comments, may be considered a “public record” under the law of Iowa.
If a Department Head or Elected Official authorizes a social media site to be used for their department or office, that Department Head or Elected Official is responsible for monitoring their own site(s). Departments or offices using social media platforms that permit Third-Party content should develop a retention policy to ensure rejected or removed posts are retained and preserved in a consistent manner. Before a post is rejected or removed, the Department Head or Elected Official is encouraged to contact the County Attorney’s Office for guidance.
Social Media Policy
Employees should be mindful of blurring their personal and professional lives when administering or using social media and social networking sites. When posting and interacting with or through official Johnson County social media sites, care should be taken to confine such communication to County business.
Inappropriate usage of official County social media and social networking sites can be grounds for disciplinary action.
Professional use
Johnson County social media and social networking sites used for official agency business are subject to best practices, guidelines, and standards for social media usage including the Departmental Social Media Policy. All official county-related communication through social media and social networking outlets should remain professional in nature and should always be conducted in accordance with Johnson County’s policies, practices and expectations.
Employees may not publish information on Johnson County social media sites that includes: •
- Confidential information
- Trademark or Copyright violations
- Profane, racist, sexist or derogatory content or comments
- Partisan political views
- Commercial endorsements or advertisements
- Spam or junk email
- Content unrelated to or outside the scope of County business
- Images from crime scenes
- Witness statements
- Any other non-public information obtained as a result of employment with the county
Employees posting pictures or videos of workplace settings, in an official County capacity, must ensure all safety policies and protocols are followed by all persons in the photo or video, and no sensitive, confidential or proprietary information or processes are included.
Personal Use
Employees should exercise caution when engaging with comments on County content.
Employees posting pictures or videos of workplace settings, whether publicly or privately, must ensure all safety policies and protocols are followed by all persons in the photo or video, and no sensitive, confidential, or proprietary information or processes are included. Employees shall not post images of crime scenes, witness statements, or other confidential and/or non-public information gained as a result of their position.
Employees must never use their work email account or password in conjunction with a personal social networking or social media site.
Employees who decide to have a personal social media, social networking site, or personal website, or who decide to comment on posts about official Johnson County business are encouraged to use a disclaimer in their social media bio or site description site such as: “This is my personal profile. The postings by and through this profile are my own and don’t reflect or represent the opinions of the entity for which I work.”