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Chapter 80
TECHNOLOGY POLICY
[HISTORY: Adopted by the Mayor and Council of the Borough of Magnolia 10-6-1999 by Ord. No. 603. Amendments noted where applicable.]
§ 80-1. Statement of purpose.
Access to borough technical resources, including, but not limited to, computers, software, network applications, Internet, e-mail and other technology based services, has been provided to public officials and staff for the benefit of the Borough of Magnolia and its residents. It allows borough officials and staff to connect to information resources with the borough administration, the state, the country and the world. Every public official and staff member has the responsibility to use borough technology in a professional manner and consistent with their elected and appointed responsibilities. The purpose of such advanced communications technology is to assist public officials and staff members in presenting a more efficient and advanced level of government services to the borough.
§ 80-2. Use of technology.
Individual users of the borough computer network, Internet and other technical resources are responsible for their behavior and communications in the use of such technology. The users will comply with borough policy and procedures contained in this chapter. "Users" are defined as individuals who are public officials or borough staff members who are authorized by the Mayor and Council to use and conduct business over borough technical resources.
§ 80-3. Restrictions.
The following is not permitted:
- Sending, retrieving, displaying or printing offensive messages.
- Using obscene language or engaging in use of the network for obscene purposes or activities. "Obscene activities" shall be defined as violation of generally accepted social standards for the use of a publicly owned and operated communications vehicle.
- Harassing, insulting or attacking others.
- Damaging computers, computer systems or computer networks.
- Violating copyright laws.
- Using or changing other's password.
- Trespassing in other's folders, work or files.
- Accessing resources not related to the user's department or work without permission.
- Intentionally wasting limited resources.
- Employing the network for commercial or personal purposes.
- Using or damaging the network for any purposes which violate federal, state or local laws.
Chapter 7
COMMUNICATIONS POLICY
[HISTORY: Adopted by the Town Board of the Town of Marlborough 8-14-2000. Amendments noted where applicable.]
GENERAL REFERENCES
Code of Ethics -- See Ch. 13.
Personnel policies -- See Ch. 29.
Records -- See Ch. 41.
§ 7-1. Purpose.
It is the purpose of this Communications Policy to set forth the rules and regulations for utilization of the town's computers and computer system.
§ 7-2. Prohibitions.
Employees and officers shall not view, send, read, download, access via the Internet or store fraudulent, harassing, embarrassing, sexually explicit, profane, obscene, intimidating, defamatory or other unlawful or inappropriate material. Such activities are prohibited insofar as they occur on town premises, occur on or via the town's computers or communication resources, occur during work time or involve communications or displays to, from or in the presence of coworkers, the public or agents of the town.
§ 7-3. Electronic communications.
Employees and officials shall not send or receive by town e-mail (or any other electronic communication involving town time or town resources) personal messages, jokes, chain mail messages, games, novelty and/or joke executables or obscene or offensive material. (Please note that some chain messages are disguised as warnings about viruses.) If a town employee or officer receives non-town-related, jokes or files from someone else, they are to refer that person to the town's policies, as set forth herein, and, if the activities continue, contact the Town Board.
§ 7-4. Time loss.
Employees and officials shall not use or waste town time and/or computer resources playing games, visiting chat rooms, etc.
§ 7-5. Advertisements and solicitations.
Employees and official hall not, without prior written permission, use town computer and communication resources for the transmission or storage of commercial or personal advertisements, solicitations, promotions or political material.
§ 7-6. Destructive programs.
Employees and officials shall not use, transmit or store destructive programs (viruses and/or self-replicating code) on any town computers or equipment, including their own individual town computer or the town network.
§ 7-7. Installation of software.
Employees and officials shall not install software onto any town computers or equipment, including their individual computers or the town network. All software installations, even free software from the Internet, will be installed by the town technician servicing the location unless expressly approved otherwise by the Town Supervisor. Any unlicensed software or personal software may be deleted by the town without notice to the employee or officer.
§ 7-8. Unlicensed software.
Employees and officials shall not use, copy or provide copies of unlicensed software.
§ 7-9. Internet browsing.
Internet browsing using town resources and/ or on town time is to be limited to that which primarily supports a town function. Any personal use of the Internet should be limited to personal time with the permission of the Town Board.
§ 7-10. Confidential information.
Employees and officials shall not send, transmit or otherwise disseminate nonpublic personal data, police materials or other confidential information of the town to an unauthorized person or in an unauthorized manner. Unauthorized dissemination of this information may result in substantial civil liability as well as severe criminal penalties under the Economic Espionage Act of 1996, as well as town discipline, including dismissal, pursuant to law.
§ 7-11. Freedom of information requests.
Employees and officials shall comply with the procedures under the Freedom of Information Law of the State of New York in a manner which does not compromise the integrity of the town's computer equipment or systems. Any foil request which may compromise the town's equipment or systems shall be reviewed and approved by the Town Board before transmittal of the information to the person who has made such request. All foil requests requiring information stored on town computers shall be retrieved by town officials and employees and delivered by diskette or hard paper copy only to the requesting party for a reasonable fee under the Freedom of Information Law, state and local regulations.
SECTION 9-36
E-Mail and Internet Code of Conduct
§ 9-36.1. Statement of Purpose.
Access to the Internet has been provided to public employees for the benefit of Bernards Township and its residents. It allows employees to connect to information resources around the state, the country and the world. Every employee has a responsibility to maintain and enhance the township's public image and to use the Internet in a productive manner. To ensure that all employees are responsible, productive Internet users and are protecting the township's public image, the following guidelines have been established for using the Internet. (Ord. #1297, 4-14-1998, adopted)
§ 9-36.2. Acceptable Uses of the Internet.
Employees accessing the Internet are representing the township. All communications should be for professional reasons. Employees are responsible for seeing that the Internet is used in an effective, ethical and lawful manner. Databases may be accessed for information as needed. E-mail may be used for business contacts. (Ord. #1297, 4-14-1998, adopted)
§ Unacceptable Uses of the Internet.
The Internet should not be used for personal gain or advancement of individual views. Solicitation of nontownship business or any use of the Internet for personal gain is strictly prohibited. Use of the Internet must not disrupt the operation of the company network or the networks of other users. It must not interfere with your productivity. (Ord. #1297, 4-14-1998, adopted)
§ E-Mail Communications.
- All employees are responsible for the content of all text, audio or images that they place or send over the Internet. Fraudulent, harassing or obscene messages are prohibited. All messages communicated on the Internet should have the sender's name attached. No messages will be transmitted under an assumed name. Users may not attempt to obscure the origin of any message. Information published on the Internet should not violate or infringe upon the rights of others. No abusive, profane or offensive language may be transmitted through the system. Employees who wish to express personal opinions on the Internet are encouraged to obtain their own user names on other Internet systems.
- Notwithstanding the township's right to read and retrieve any electronic mail messages, such messages should be treated as confidential by other employees and accessed only by the intended recipient. Employees are not authorized to retrieve or read any e-mail messages that are not sent to them. Any exception to this policy must receive prior approval from the systems administrator or acting supervisor. Employees should not attempt to gain access to another employee's messages without the latter's permission. All computer passwords and login names must be submitted to the systems administrator. No codes may be used that are unknown to the systems administrator. (Ord. #1297, 4-14-1998, adopted)
§ 9-36.5. Software.
To prevent computer viruses from being transmitted through the system, there will be no unauthorized downloading of any software. All software downloads will be done through the systems administrator or someone authorized to do so by the systems administrator. (Ord. #1297, 4-14-1998, adopted)
§ 9-36.6. Copyright Issues.
Copyrighted materials belonging to entities may not be transmitted by township employees on the Internet. One copy of the copyrighted material may be downloaded for your own personal use in research. Users are not permitted to copy, transfer, rename and/or delete information or programs belonging to other users unless given express permission to do so by the owner. Failure to observe copyright or license agreements may result in disciplinary action or legal action by the copyright owner. (Ord. #1297, 4-14-1998, adopted)
§ 9-36.7. Security.
All messages created, sent or retrieved over the Internet are the property of Bernards Township. The township reserves the right to access and monitor all messages and files on the computer system as deemed necessary and appropriate. The confidentiality of any messages should not be assumed. Even when a message is erased, it is possible to retrieve and read that message. Further, the use of passwords for security does not guarantee confidentiality. All communications, including text and images, can be disclosed to law enforcement or other third parties without prior consent of the sender or the receiver. (Ord. #1297, 4-14-1998, adopted)
§ 9-36.8. Harassment.
Harassment of any kind is prohibited. No messages with derogatory or inflammatory remarks about an individual's or group's race, religion, national origin, physical attributes or sexual preference may be transmitted. (Ord. #1297, 4-14-1998, adopted)
§ 9-36.9. Violations.
Violations of any guidelines listed above will be presented to the department supervisor, human resources and/or Township Administrator. It may result in disciplinary action up to and including termination. If necessary, the township will advise appropriate legal officials of any illegal violations. (Ord. #1297, 4-14-1998, adopted)
Chapter 15
PERSONNEL POLICIES
§ 15-49. Computer, electronic communications systems and Internet usage policy. [Added 1-10-2000 by Res. No. 2000-1]
- Purpose. This policy sets forth the Authority's policy regarding the use of its computers, computer networks, electronic mail (e-mail) systems, telephone systems (including voicemail) and other electronic communications systems.
- Applicability. This policy shall apply to all Authority employees and to all the Authority's computers, computer networks, e-mail systems, telephone systems and other electronic communications systems.
- Inspection and monitoring. The Authority reserves the right to inspect, examine and monitor the use of its computers, computer networks, e-mail systems, telephone systems (including voice mail), and all other electronic communication systems at any time and without notice.
- General policies.
(1) Voice mail, e-mail, computers, computer networks, computer files, software programs, all communications created on, received by, stored on or transmitted through those systems are the sole and exclusive property of the authority. Records, data, files, software, and all electronic communications contained in these systems likewise are the property of the Authority. These systems and their contents are subject to inspection, examination and/or monitoring by authorized Authority personnel at any time and without notice. The authorized personnel are the General Manager, the Accounting Supervisor and the Executive Secretary.
(2) These systems and equipment should not be used for personal reasons and should remain on Authority property at all times unless specific authorization is given to do so.
(3) Examples of reasons for which the Authority may access employee voice mail, e-mail, computer files, computer networks or other Authority property include, but are not limited to:
(a) Instances when an employee is unavailable, but the Authority must access a system to operate its business.
(b) Instances when the Authority management suspects that its property is being used in an unauthorized or illegal manner.
(c) For quality control purposes or for training activities.
(d) To monitor job performance.
(e) For any other appropriate business purpose.
(4) Authority employees are advised to use voice mail and e-mail as cautiously as they would use any other type of communication medium such as a memorandum or letter. Employees must realize, for example, those electronic messages:
(a) May be copied, saved and read by the Authority or other third parties.
(b) May be retrieved even after having been deleted.
(c) May be accessed by authorized Authority personnel for business purposes.
(5) Employees are advised that the computers, computer networks, e-mail systems, telephone systems (including voice mail), and other electronic communication systems (and all communications created on, received by, stored on or transmitted through those systems) are the sole and exclusive property of the Authority. Accordingly, employees should have no expectation of privacy regarding any such communications.
(6) Passwords are only intended to prevent unauthorized access to e-mail, computer files or voice mail. The Authority reserves the right to allow authorized Authority personnel to access messages and files on the Authority's systems at any time. All employees must supply their current passwords to the Executive Secretary.
(7) Voicemail and e-mail should be deleted if not needed.
(8) Communications created, received, stored on or transmitted through the Authority's electronic communications systems may not contain content that could be reasonably considered offensive or disruptive to any employee. Offensive content would include, but is not limited to, sexual comments or images, racial slurs, gender-specific comments or any comments that would offend someone on the basis of his or her age, sexual orientation, religious or political beliefs, national origin or disability.
(9) Supervisors are responsible for their subordinates' use of the Internet, e-mail, computer systems, etc. Employees who learn of any misuse of the Authority's voice-mail or e-mail systems or other violations of this policy must notify the Accounting Supervisor immediately.
- Internet policy.
(1) Access to the Internet has been provided to employees for the benefit of the Authority. Every employee has a responsibility to maintain and enhance the Authority's public image and to use the Internet in a productive manner.
(2) Acceptable uses of the Internet. Employees accessing the Internet are representing the Authority. All communications should be for business reasons. Employees are responsible for seeing that the Internet is used in an effective, ethical and lawful manner.
(3) Unacceptable uses of the Internet. The Internet must not be used for personal reasons. Solicitation of non-Authority business, or any use of the Internet for personal gain is strictly prohibited. Use of the Internet must not disrupt the operation of the Authority network or the networks of other users.
(4) Communications. Each employee is responsible for the content of all text, audio or images that he/she places or sends over the Internet. Fraudulent, harassing or obscene messages are prohibited. All messages communicated on the Internet must have the employee's name attached. No messages will be transmitted under an assumed name. Users may not attempt to obscure the origin of any message. Information published on the Internet should not violate or infringe upon the rights of others. No abusive, profane or offensive language is to be transmitted through the system.
- Authorized software. All software installed on the Authority's computers must be authorized software. Authorized software is that software purchased by and licensed to the Authority. A list of authorized software is available from the Accounting Supervisor. Employees are not permitted to load any unauthorized software. The only media (floppy disk, zip disk) that is authorized for use is that which was purchased and provided by the Authority. An employee in conjunction with any VFSA computer may use no unauthorized media. To prevent computer viruses from being transmitted through the system, there will be no unauthorized downloading of any software or the utilization of unauthorized media. All software downloads must be done through the Accounting Supervisor.
- Copyright issues. Copyrighted materials belonging to entities other than the Authority may not be downloaded or transmitted by employees on the Internet. Users are not permitted to copy, transfer, rename, add or delete information or programs belonging to other users unless given express permission to do so by the owner. Failure to observe copyright or license agreements may result in disciplinary action from the Authority or legal action by the copyright owner.
- Security. All messages created, sent or retrieved over the Internet are the property of the Authority and should be considered public information. The Authority reserves the right to access and monitor all messages and files on the computer system as deemed necessary and appropriate. Internet messages are public communications and are not private. All communications, including text and images, can be disclosed to law enforcement or other third parties without prior consent of the sender or the receiver.
- Programs and databases. Employees are not permitted to make programming changes to any software programs. Only authorized individuals whose primary responsibility it is to administer or maintain particular aspects of the Authority's business are permitted to make changes to the databases for which they have responsibility.
- Violations. Violations of this policy may result in disciplinary action up to and including termination. If necessary, the Authority will advise appropriate legal officials of any illegal activity.
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