POLICY REPORT

COMMUNICATIONS

Date: February 5, 1998

Author/Local: S. Macrae/7270

CC File No. 1150

TO:	Vancouver City Council
FROM:	Director of Communications
SUBJECT:	Policy on Personal Web Pages for Members of Council

CONSIDERATION

A.THAT the City provide no more web-based information about Members of Council than is currently on the City website, that is, name, phone and fax numbers, email address, photograph, number of years on Council and remuneration.

OR

B.THAT the City website display web pages containing standardized biographical information about members of Council, including a photograph, a biography listing non-Council business activities, relevant civic committee memberships and duties, and expanded contact information.

OR

C.THAT the City website display web pages containing standardized biographical information about members of Council, including a photograph, a biography listing non-Council business activities, relevant civic committee memberships and duties, expanded contact information and a reference to a non-City website that would be removed in the period between issuing of Notice of Nominations and the City election (a period of 76 days).

CITY MANAGER’S COMMENTS

The City Manager submits the choice between A, B and C for CONSIDERATION.

COUNCIL POLICY

The City's Conflict of Interest policy states, in part:

A Conflict of Interest situation will exist when:

·Internet services provided by the City are used by staff for anything but City business.

·Staff express personal opinions, promote political or religious beliefs, or endorse any products, organizations or services through the Internet in association with the City’s name. The City’s name shall be considered used if any portion of a document, e-mail address, signature block or URL identifies the City or an associated Board as the source.

PURPOSE

This report places policy options before Council on displaying information about members of Council on the City's website.

BACKGROUND

At its meeting of December 11, 1997 Council asked staff to report back on a policy for Councillors’ personal websites.

DISCUSSION

At present, the City’s website contains limited information about Council Members.

This includes a page of photographs, contact information, a listing of the number of years that each member has served on Council, and general information on remuneration. This information does not inform residents of the personal background, responsibilities and interests of each Council Member.

The current format appears to be standard for municipal websites in the Greater Vancouver Regional District. Elsewhere, there is a wide variety among, and in some cases within, municipal governments. Some examples are:

In Edmonton, members of council have a profile page. The format is some variant of occupation, business address, business phone, place of birth, education, business and professional record, public and community service, and hobbies/recreational interests. There is some leeway within this format, but the material is essentially a biographical sketch of the council member’s current and past public/work activities.

In Seattle, council web pages range from a simple photo, phone number and email address to more elaborate collections of biographical material and links to documents that fall within the council member’s legislative interest.

Portland provides a wider view of council members on its website. There is more material, and it is more overtly subjective and politically oriented. Profiles tend to be first-person and less objective than, say, the Edmonton profiles.

Three options are proposed for Council’s consideration:

Option A

The City would provide no more web-based information than is currently on the City website. Councillors who want to have personal web pages could, at their own expense and effort, purchase accounts through private Internet Service Providers. The City would not pay for such accounts, nor for any medium that directs people to this information source.

Option B

The City website would display strictly formatted personal web pages for members of Council. The format would include: a photograph, standardized biography listing non-Council business activities, a standardized listing of relevant civic committee memberships and duties, and expanded contact information (i.e., business information).

Council members currently make available, on request, a printed version of such a standardized biography. This option would essentially convert the printed material for display on the website.

Even if Council favours this option, not all members may choose to provide material in this format. In that event, some suitable wording -- for example, "Biographical information not available" -- could be used to indicate the reason.

Councillors who want to display information beyond the scope of this format could, at their own expense and effort, purchase accounts on a non-City website.

The City would not make reference to a non-City website on the City website, nor would it pay for any medium that directs people to this information source.

Option C

The City website would display biographical pages as in Option B, adding a text reference to privately contracted websites. The City website would not provide a direct link, that is, a clickable portion of hypertext that would immediately connect the reader to the privately contracted website. Providing a text reference to a website may be considered analogous to the current provision of business phone numbers on some Council members' business cards.

A policy on personal websites for members of Council must deal with potential criticism that use of the City’s website to refer to personal information as outlined in this option constitutes a taxpayer-funded electoral advantage over non-incumbent candidates. It is therefore proposed that any reference to a non-City website would be removed from the City website in the period between the first date for Notice of Nominations and the City election (a period of 76 days).

There would be no reference to a non-City website in any other City-funded medium.

CONCLUSION

The Internet is one of a number of vehicles by which the City publishes information to citizens. As with printed information, guidelines on its appropriate use will assist in maintaining the integrity of this medium.

* * * * *

(c) 1997 City of Vancouver