I. PURPOSE

This Policy establishes guidelines for City use of social media sites. The City has an overriding interest and expectation in protecting the integrity of the information posted on City Social Media Sites and the content that is attributed to the City and its officials and employees.

This Policy applies to City officials, employees, contractors, volunteers, and any other person or entity participating in social media on behalf of the City as part of their duties. All pre-existing and proposed social media sites and online accounts created by employees during the course and scope of their employment are subject to this policy.

The City regards social media and any official online and internet presence as a means of enhancing traditional communication methods to engage, convey information to, and communicate with members of the public.

The City’s use of social media shall:

1. Build awareness and interest regarding City business (i.e., mission, services, projects, meetings, activities and events, etc.);

2. Widen the rapid disbursement of emergency information;

3. Steer the public toward informational resources on the City website;

4. Disseminate timely, relevant information; and

5. Foster civic pride and engagement within the community.

City: The City of Duarte, California

City Business: Information relating to the conduct of the public’s business or communications concerning matters within the City’s jurisdiction, including, but not limited to, pending or potential City projects, past or prospective City agenda items, or City budgets or expenditures involving City funds.

City Social Media Sites: Social media sites which the City establishes and maintains and has control of all postings (excluding advertisements or hyperlinks on the social media vendor’s website). City social media sites will supplement, not replace, the City’s official website for all notices and events.

Employee(s): Shall include all City employees (full-time, part-time, temporary, and seasonal), volunteers, contractors, consultants, vendors, and other persons at the City, including all personnel affiliated with third parties who have access and/or authorization to use City social media sites.

Employee Access: The degree to which authorized employees are allowed to access social media sites while at work and the procedures for gaining access.

Post: Items of information, articles, photos, video, etc., placed on a City social media site.

Social Media: The term “social media” is used to refer to various activities and websites that integrate technology, social interaction, and content creation. This may include but is not limited to: media sharing (examples: YouTube, Flickr, iTunes), blogging/microblogging (examples: WordPress, Blogger, Twitter/X), and social networking (examples: Facebook, LinkedIn, Instagram, Nextdoor, TikTok). These examples are only for reference; the City is not required to use any of these third-party tools, services, or technologies.

This Policy is the City’s official position governing the use of social media. The City has an overriding interest and expectation in what is announced or spoken on City social media sites. This Policy establishes internal procedures for the use of social media.

A. The City’s official website, www.AccessDuarte.com, remains the City’s primary online presence and means of digital/electronic communication. City social media pages may supplement, but shall not replace, the City’s legally required notices.

B. To the extent possible, a link to the City’s website shall be included on all City social media pages. Forms, documents, online services, and other information necessary to conduct business with and/or in the City of Duarte shall also be included on all City social media pages to the extent possible.

C. Neither this Policy nor the City’s use of social media is intended to require that the City or its employees be active on social media.

D. The City Manager, or his/her designee, shall have the discretion to direct dissemination of emergency information. Emergency information may be posted on the City’s social media sites prior to being posted on the City’s website.

E. The use of social media by the City is not intended to create any contract with anyone at any time or in any way, nor is any use of social media by the City intended to create any expectation of action to be taken by the City. The public is warned that there is no reasonable expectation that the City, nor any emergency services of the City, will respond to any social media posting.

F. City social media sites shall be managed consistent with the Brown Act. City officials shall not respond to, like, share, re-tweet, or otherwise participate in any published postings, or use the site to post, blog, engage in serial meetings, or otherwise discuss, deliberate, or express opinion on any issue within the subject matter of the jurisdiction of the body, except in accordance with Section VI of this Policy.

G. All City social media sites shall be a limited public forum. A limited public forum is a place where reasonable, content-based prohibitions may be utilized in furtherance of a compelling public interest. It is important to note that while the City may provide a platform to engage and communicate, it is not obligated to actively engage with users on its social media platforms.

H. The City shall preserve social media activities as an extension of public-agency-related business and not for the purpose of creating a much broader public forum.

I. The Comment and Content Moderation Policy section of this document shall govern comments and public usage of City social media sites.

J. City social media sites shall comply with usage rules and regulations required by the site provider, including privacy policies.

K. All City social media sites shall adhere to applicable federal, state, and local laws, regulations and policies. This includes but is not limited to laws and policies regarding copyrights, records retention, the Public Records Act, the First Amendment, privacy laws, and information security.

L. All City social media sites are subject to the Public Records Act (PRA), Records Retention Policy of the City and the State of California as they may be amended from time to time. Any content maintained in a social media format that is related to City business, including, but not limited to, a list of subscribers, posted communications, and communication submitted for posting, and that is otherwise retained by the City in accordance with applicable laws and policies, may be a public record subject to disclosure.

M. Any unofficial or unauthorized content and all content posted by a member of the public on the City social media sites are the opinions of the person making the post. Appearance of content on a City social media site does not necessarily imply endorsement of, nor agreement by, the City, nor does such content necessarily reflect the opinions or policies of the City.

N. The City will immediately edit or remove content from City social media sites that does not adhere to this Policy.

O. The City Manager or his/her designee reserves the right to restrict, review, or remove any content that is deemed in violation of this Policy or any applicable law.

P. City social media sites may contain content, including, but not limited to, advertisements or hyperlinks, over which the City has no control. The City does not endorse any hyperlink or advertisement placed on City social media sites by the social media site’s owners, vendors, or partners.

Q. The City Manager or his/her designee reserves the right to terminate use of any City social media site at any time without notice.

R. The City reserves the right to change. modify, or amend all or part of this Policy at any time.

When posting on social networking websites or other social media channels on behalf of the City, employees are, in effect, serving as the voice of the City. Therefore, all posting shall be in accordance with the guidelines set forth below.

A. Employee Access

1. Any employee authorized to post items on any of the City social media sites shall review, be familiar with, and comply with this Policy, and any applicable terms and conditions.

2. The use of personal email, personal social media accounts, or personal phone numbers by any City employee is not allowed for the purpose of setting-up, updating, posting or maintaining a City social media site, unless previously authorized by the City Manager or his/her designee.

3. The City’s social media sites are reserved for City communication only; they may not be used for any employee’s personal use.

B. Content Rules and Guidelines

1. Except as expressly provided in this policy, accessing, and posting on any City social media site shall comply with all applicable City policies pertaining to communications and the use of the Internet by employees.

2. Authorized employees shall only use City-owned equipment to work on social media sites on behalf of the City.

3. All official City-related communications through social media shall remain professional in nature and shall be consistent with the City’s values and professional standards.

4. Employees shall always make every effort to ensure that information shared via social media is factual and accurate.

5. All posts shall follow professional standards for correct grammar, spelling, brevity, clarity, and accuracy, and shall avoid jargon, abbreviations, or acronyms when possible.

6. All employees authorized to post items on any of the City’s social media sites shall not express his/her own personal views or concerns through such postings.

7. Employees are discouraged from using their own personal social media pages to conduct or comment about City business. In the event employees post about City business on their personal media pages, such posts may be subject to the PRA and any other applicable law.

8. The City shall ensure and maintain full permission or rights to any content posted by departments, including photos and videos.

C. Employee Personal Use Guidelines

1. City employees and officials should refrain from representing themselves in an official capacity on their personal social media accounts. While employees do not need explicit permission from the City to utilize social media in their personal capacity, they are cautioned that certain restrictions may apply, including the limitations of receiving compensation, disclosing nonpublic information, and misusing a City title or official authority, even when they think they are acting in a personal capacity. Employees are encouraged to check with their department head if there are any questions or concerns.

A. This section of the Policy is adopted, in part, in light of California Assembly Bill No. 992, which authorizes members of a legislative body to use social media to communicate with the public, subject to statutory exceptions.

B. The City recognizes that social media has become an integral channel of communication for individual members of the public. However, such communications must be balanced against legal obligations with respect to transparency in the conduct of the people’s business. For example, the Brown Act requires that legislative bodies of public agencies deliberate and take action openly (Gov. Code §§ 54950, et seq.). Moreover, communications regarding City business on private accounts may be subject to disclosure under the Public Records Act (Gov. Code §§ 6250, et seq.). To that end, the protocol described in this section will be followed.

C. Public Records Act: City officials shall be aware that their posts, comments, and responses about City business on social media platforms, whether on public or private pages, may be subject to disclosure under the Public Records Act.

D. First Amendment: City officials shall also be aware that their private social media accounts may be transformed into public forums where members of the public may have First Amendment rights. In determining whether a private social media page has become a public forum, courts have examined factors including:

1. How the official is referenced on the site (i.e., are they referenced as “Mayor” or “Chair”, or simply “Jane Doe”?);

2. How the page is titled (i.e., is the account registered as a governmental account or a private account?);

3. How the official “invites” users to use the page (i.e., in cases in which the account was deemed a public one, the public official solicited the public’s opinion on City matters);

4. Whether the official is “transacting” City matters on the site (i.e., replying to constituent comments regarding City business)

5. Whether City Employees help maintain and operate the site; and

6. Whether the official uses the site to engage directly with the public (i.e., replying to constituent comments regarding City business).

7. Whether an account is private, or public is fact-specific and depends on the totality of the circumstances. If there are reasons to believe that a City official’s private social media page has turned into a public forum, City officials should refrain from blocking members of the public from the page or deleting comments with which they disagree.

E. Brown Act: City officials may engage in separate conversations or communicate on social media platforms to answer questions, provide information to the public, or solicit information from the public regarding City business.

F. However, City official may not:

1. Discuss City business with a majority of members of commenting, or using digital icons (i.e., a thumbs up or an emoji);

2. Respond directly to another member’s communication, comment, or post if the two are on the same legislative body of the City and the topic concerns City business.

3. City officials must keep their social media presence separate from that of the City, and from that of other City officials. As such, the City recommends that City officials include the following language on their personal social media sites: “All content on this page is my own and not a reflection of the City of Duarte, its employees or other elected officials.”

Social media sites contain communications sent to or received by the City and its Employees, and such communications may be public records subject to the Public Records Act. Retention requirements apply regardless of the form of the record (i.e., digital text, photos, audio, and video). The Department maintaining a site shall preserve records, as may be legally required, pursuant to a relevant records retention schedule for the required retention period in a format that preserves the integrity of the original record and is easily accessible. Furthermore, retention of social media records shall fulfill the following requirements:

A. Social media records are captured in a continuous, automated fashion throughout the day to minimize a potential loss of data due to deletion and/or changes on the social networking site.

B. Social media records are archived in a system that preserves the context of communications, including conversation threads and rich media, to ensure completeness and availability of relevant information when records are accessed.

C. Social media records are indexed based on specific criteria such as date, content type, and keywords to ensure that records can be quickly located and produced in an appropriate format for distribution (e.g. PDF).

D. Each employee who administers one or more social networking sites on behalf of the City has self-service, read-only access to search, and produce relevant social media records to fulfill public information and legal discovery requests as needed.

E. The City utilizes an automated archiving solution provided by Pagefreezer to comply with applicable public records law and fulfill the above record retention requirements.

City social media sites are not monitored in real-time. If you have an emergency or know of a crime in progress, call 9-1-1 immediately.

Media Inquiries: If you are a reporter, please direct your inquiries to the City’s Public Information Officer at (626) 357-7931. We do not post nor respond to reporters’ questions on the City’s social media site.

The City of Duarte is not responsible for comments, remarks, messages, or other material posted to its social media sites and does not, in any way, guarantee, ensure, or warrant the content, accuracy, or use of social media content from anyone else. The City of Duarte specifically disclaims all liability for claims or damages that may result from any posting on its social media sites. Opinions expressed on the City’s social media sites are those of the person posting and do not necessarily reflect the opinions, practices, or policies of the City. In no event shall the City of Duarte be liable to you or anyone else for any decision made or action taken in reliance on information on our social media sites.

By accessing, viewing and/or posting content to the City’s social media sites, you accept, without limitation or qualification, these terms and conditions of use, as well as any other terms of use required by the company that owns and operates the social media site. If you do not agree to the terms of this Policy, do not access, view, and/or post any content. Your use of the City’s social media sites is deemed acceptance of these terms and conditions and to have the same effect as if you had actually physically signed an agreement.

These terms and conditions are in addition to the third-party policies, terms, and conditions of any social media provider (i.e. Facebook, LinkedIn, Twitter, YouTube, etc.). The City of Duarte does not operate or control these social media sites and is subject to the terms of use for these sites by the providers. The City of Duarte does not control the terms and conditions of the social media site providers.

Comments Are Public and Reviewed

The City of Duarte’s social media sites are public pages and viewable by the general public. The City reserves the right, at any time, to allow comments or to disable them on any of the City’s social media sites. To the extent that comments are allowed, comments, and shared information may also become part of a public record and may be archived in order to abide with applicable laws, e-discovery requirements, and document retention policies.

Information shared through the City of Duarte’s social media sites may be subject to release to those who request it through the Public Records Act or other public information statutes. Use of the City of Duarte’s social media sites and the posting of any content is deemed a waiver by users of any rights to privacy or confidentiality. Please be aware that all comments are reviewed upon posting. Because the sites are visible to the general public, persons who leave comments are expected to do so with respect, good manners, and careful thought.

In order to foster a safe and inclusive environment, the City of Duarte asks that all users refrain from posting comments which contain the following:

• Comments which contain profane language, sexual content, pornography, obscenity, or links to any such content;

• Content that promotes, fosters, or perpetuates discrimination on the basis of race, ethnicity, color, age, religion, gender, disability, sexual orientation/identity, political beliefs, and/or a protected class under local, state, or federal law;

• Defamation or personal attacks;

• Threats to any person or organization;

• Incitement of violence or unlawful activity;

• Harassment, including content that constitutes or facilitates stalking;

• Spam;

• Posts that contain external links.

In addition, if public comments are enabled on a City social media site, the site would be considered a limited public forum. In a limited forum, the City of Duarte reserves the right to moderate, monitor, remove, prohibit, restrict, suspend, terminate, delete, discontinue, or reject comments and access to comments if they are:

• Comments not related to City business;

• Sexual content, pornography, obscenity, or links to any such content;

• Defamation;

• Conduct in violation of any local, county, state, or federal law

• Content that violates the intellectual property of any party;

• Harassment or content which constitutes and/or facilitates stalking;

• Speech that is intended to incite unlawful activity, including violence, in a way that is both imminent and likely;

The above list is not exhaustive. The City of Duarte reserves the right to remove or restrict any post or comment that violates the purpose or spirit of these terms and conditions.

The City of Duarte does not edit comments to remove objectionable or inappropriate content.

Information contained on the City’s social media sites may be interpreted, recorded, read, copied, and disclosed by and to authorized personnel for any official purpose, including criminal investigations. Unauthorized access or use of the City’s social media sites, including attempting to unauthorized copying, altering, destroying, or damaging site content may violate the Federal Computer Fraud and Abuse Act of 1986 and may subject violators to criminal, civil, and/or administrative action.

Privacy: Do not include personally identifiable information in comments.

Highlighting Local Businesses and Organizations: The City of Duarte actively supports and highlights local businesses and organizations as part of our commitment to community engagement and economic development. We welcome opportunities to share factual information about local businesses and organizations, including their locations, operating hours, and community events hosted in collaboration with the City. However, it’s important to note that the City of Duarte does not engage in the promotion of commercial entities, products, services, or non-governmental organizations independently. We do not endorse or facilitate promotional activities for businesses or organizations unless they are in direct collaboration with the City.

The City’s Comments Are Not Legal Advice and User Comments Are Not Official Notice

Posting, interactions, and messages made through social media sites do not constitute legal advice. Likewise, anything posted by a user is not considered an official notice or comment to the City of Duarte or to any official or to any employee for any purpose. The City of Duarte disclaims all warranties, expressed or implied, for any of the information and content provided in its social media sites.

You can contact the City of Duarte by visiting www.accessduarte.com or calling (626) 357-7931 Monday through Thursday from 7:30 AM - 6 PM.

Posts in the Public Domain Become Public

By posting on the City’s social media sites, users grant the City of Duarte a non-exclusive, transferable, sub-licensable, royalty-free, worldwide license to use that content. The City of Duarte can reproduce, distribute, publicly display, and otherwise use any posted content.

Advertisement and Link Disclaimer

The City of Duarte does not endorse nor support any advertising that may be contained on its social media sites nor on any of the pages of any linked or referenced sites. The City of Duarte does not generally link to the following:

• Candidate or nominee sites nor sites advocating a position on City or ballot issues

• Corporate commercial sites

• Personal home pages

External links may be provided at times and are posted only as additional information or resource material. The City of Duarte does not attest to the accuracy of information provided by any links. Should a user access another site through a link, the user is then subject to that destination site’s privacy policy and terms of use.

Intellectual Property Use

Images, photographs, written works, and graphics posted by the City, unless otherwise noted, are the property of the City of Duarte and are protected under both the United States and International Copyright Laws. These images, photographs, written works, and graphics may not be reproduced, copied, transmitted, or manipulated without the written permission of the City of Duarte. Any use without written permission is a violation of the United States and International Copyright Laws.

For questions or permission to reproduce the City’s social media, please call (626) 357-7931.

Indemnification

By using the City of Duarte’s social media sites, users agree to defend, indemnify, and hold the City of Duarte and its directors, employees, contractors, representatives, agents, successors, and assigns harmless from and against any and all losses, claims, damages, settlements, costs, and liabilities of any nature whatsoever (including reasonable attorneys’ fees) to which they may become subject and which arise out of, are based upon, are as a result of, or are in any way connected with use of the City of Duarte’s social media sites, including any third party claims of infringement or any breach of these terms and conditions.

Jurisdiction

By using the City of Duarte’s social media sites, users agree that any claim or dispute relating to the posting of any content shall be construed in accordance with the laws of the State of California without regard to its conflict of laws provisions, and users agree to be bound and shall be subject to the exclusive jurisdiction of the state and federal courts located in Los Angeles County, California.

This Policy Is Subject to Modification

This Policy may be revised at any time without notice.

This Privacy Notice discloses the City of Duarte’s privacy practices and how we collect and use the information you supply when you interact with the City website. By accessing and using the website, you acknowledge the City of Duarte Privacy Notice and accept the policies and practices described in this document.

The City of Duarte collects no personal information about you without your knowledge when you visit this site, although you may choose to provide this information to us in specific instances. However, we do collect and store certain information automatically.

INFORMATION COLLECTED AND STORED AUTOMATICALLY

When you browse, read pages, or download information in the AccessDuarte.com domain, certain technical information about your visit is automatically gathered and stored. This information does not identify who you are. The information collected and stored about your visit includes:

• The Internet Protocol (IP) address of the domain from which you access the Internet, whether yours individually or provided as a proxy by your Internet Service Provider (ISP)

• The type of browser and operating system used to access our site

• The date and time you access our site

• Pages and files you viewed and downloaded

• The Internet address of the website from which you linked directly to our site.

The summary statistics are used to help make our site more useful to visitors, such as assessing what information is of most and least interest to visitors, and for other purposes such as determining the site's technical design specifications and identifying system performance or problem areas.

This information is not shared with anyone beyond the support staff for this website and other appropriate City staff, except when required by computer security, law enforcement investigation or other authorized legal purpose, and is customarily used only as a source of anonymous statistical information. 

COOKIES

Website in the AccessDuarte.com domain uses persistent cookies only to store website display related user preferences (e.g. font size, display tooltips, etc.), and the cookies do not collect any personal information.

IF YOU SEND US PERSONAL INFORMATION

If you choose to provide the City with personal information - such as filling out a form and submitting it to us through the website - that information will be used only to complete the activity for which it was provided, whether it is a one-time event or a recurring event, such as providing a subscription service. This information may be used for the technical support of the website and its computer system, or to enhance, evaluate, or otherwise review the website or service. The information may also be used to contact an individual in response to a request for information.

You may choose to provide us with personal information, as in an e-mail message containing your comments or questions. We use this information to improve our service to you or to respond to your request. There are times when your message is forwarded, as e-mail, to other employees who may be better able to help you.

Personal information, collected as noted herein, is retained to meet the needs of the stated purpose and is then discarded in accordance with the City’s Records Retention Policy.

The City of Duarte does NOT collect information for commercial marketing. Personal information is shared only with employees of the City of Duarte involved in processing data for the completion of the stated purpose, entities for which the City is acting as an agent, and/or entities acting as the City's agent (an agent in this instance is defined as a third party that processes data only for the completion of the stated purpose), except for authorized law enforcement investigations, or as otherwise required by federal or State law, including but not limited to, the California Public Records Act.

Although we take reasonable measures to safeguard against unauthorized disclosures of information, we cannot assure you that personally identifiable information that we collect will never be disclosed in a manner that is inconsistent with this privacy policy.

Messages transmitted via email are not secure and any information transmitted to this site via email should be assumed to not be confidential. 

LINKS TO OTHER SITES

The City of Duarte website contains links to other sites whose information practices may be different from ours. Please read the other sites' privacy notices and note that we have no control over information that is submitted to, or collected by, these third parties.

DISCLAIMER OF LIABILITY

Neither the City of Duarte, nor any of its programs, employees, agents or individual elected officials, shall be held liable for any improper or incorrect use of the information described and/or contained in the City website and the City assumes no responsibility for anyone's use of the information. In no event shall the City website, or its programs, employees, agents or individual elected officials be liable for any direct, indirect, incidental, special, exemplary, or consequential damages (including, but not limited to, procurement or substitute goods or services; loss of use, data, or profits; or business interruption) however caused and on any theory of liability, whether in contract, strict liability, or tort (including negligence or otherwise) arising in any way out of the use of this system, even if advised of the possibility of such damage. This disclaimer of liability applies to any damages or injury, including but not limited to those caused by any failure of performance, error, omission, interruption, deletion, defect, delay in operation or transmission, computer virus, communication line failure, theft or destruction or unauthorized access to, alteration of, or use of record, whether for breach of contract, tortious behavior, negligence or under any other cause of action.

Communication made with the City of Duarte through this website shall not constitute public comment or legal notice to the City or any of its officers, employees, agents or representatives with respect to any past, existing, or potential claim or cause of action regarding the City or any of its agents, officers, employees, agents or representatives, where notice to City is required by laws, rules or regulations. Please be advised that such communications may be subject to disclosure under the California Public Records Act.

DISCLAIMER OF WARRANTIES AND ACCURACY OF DATA

Although the data found on the City website have been produced and processed from sources believed to be reliable, no warranty, express or implied, is made regarding accuracy, adequacy, completeness, legality, reliability or usefulness of any information. This disclaimer applies to both isolated and aggregate uses of the information. THE CITY OF DUARTE PROVIDES THIS INFORMATION ON AN "AS IS" BASIS. ALL WARRANTIES OF ANY KIND, EXPRESS OR IMPLIED, INCLUDING BUT NOT LIMITED TO THE IMPLIED WARRANTIES OF MERCHANTABILITY, FITNESS FOR A PARTICULAR PURPOSE, FREEDOM FROM CONTAMINATION BY COMPUTER VIRUSES AND NON-INFRINGEMENT OF PROPRIETARY RIGHTS ARE DISCLAIMED. Changes may be periodically made to the information herein; these changes may or may not be incorporated in any new versions of the City website. If a user has obtained information from any of the City web pages via a source other than the City website, be aware that electronic data can be altered subsequent to original distribution. Data can also quickly become out of date. It is recommended that careful attention be paid to the contents of any data associated with a file, and that the originator of the data or information be contacted with any questions regarding appropriate use.

Use of this website constitutes acceptance of this waiver of liability and warranties.

Please Tune To Spectrum Channel 3 To View The Duarte PEG Channel 

I. PURPOSE OF THE CITY OF DUARTE'S PEG CHANNEL

The City of Duarte’s ( “City” or “Duarte”) PEG channel is a limited public forum, the use of which is limited to the purposes and policies expressly permitted in this PEG Channel Usage Policy (“PEG Policy”). The Purpose of the Duarte PEG channel is to:

• Provide non-commercial governmental programming, as defined in Section II.

• Provide a convenient and information-rich resource for residents, visitors, businesses, non-profit organizations, other public agencies, and schools to access their city government.

• Act as a source of information during local emergencies.

Per Assembly Bill 2987, the Digital Infrastructure and Video Competition Act of 2006 (DIVCA), the City may designate any combination of the PEG channel allowances; it does not have to offer all three components–Public, Education, Government.

II. GOVERNMENTAL PROGRAMMING, ACCESS ELIGIBILITY & VERIFICATION

The City’s PEG channel is a government access channel. Access eligibility is open to the City, non-profit organizations that have current partnerships with the City (e.g., co-sponsorships, contracts, memoranda of understanding), Duarte Unified School District, California School of the Arts - San Gabriel Valley, and public agencies that serve Duarte residents (collectively, “producers,” or individually as “producer”). Individuals, commercial, for-profit organizations, and other organizations not expressly permitted access eligibility herein are not eligible to become a producer. Individuals such as employees, contractors, and volunteers affiliated with producers but are not representing a producer or are not authorized to provide programming on behalf of a producer are producers themselves. The City reserves the right to obtain verification regarding whether the submission of any programming for the Duarte PEG channel was duly authorized by the producer.

III.MANAGEMENT GUIDELINES

A. RESOURCES
Air time on the access channel is free of charge.

This policy documents resources, guidelines, and other informational materials that detail the current process for scheduling channel time. The City is responsible for the equitable apportionment of this finite resource to ensure availability for all eligible producers. It may determine necessary limitations such as program length, the number of programs scheduled at one time; acceptable formats for delivery of programs; the process for delivery; and other related procedures and requirements.

B. OPERATIONAL PROCEDURES
Producers must complete and submit a Program Submittal Request Form on the City website. At this time, producers may request specific showing times, though there is no guarantee of preferred placement times or sequences. Staff will match space with requested times whenever possible. 

Upon receiving requests for material to be broadcast, the City will determine if the proposed material is consistent with this policy. If the City concludes that the proposed material violates this policy, the decision may be appealed to the City Manager. The City reserves the right to refuse any request for PEG channel programming that is in violation of the PEG Policy or any local, state, or federal law.

The curation of program content, including order, sequencing, and duration, is determined by the City. The City of Duarte may place notices of any kind between programs, including notices disclaiming editorial responsibility or control of program content.

IV. CONTENT GUIDELINES

Duarte’s PEG channel is for producers, as defined in Section II above, to present programming, subject to restrictions as may be expressly authorized herein or otherwise in accordance with law.

1. Commercial Content: Duarte PEG channel resources shall not be used for private financial gain or commercial purposes. Therefore, no program showing on Duarte’s PEG channel may contain commercial advertisements or be designed to promote any commercial product, service, or business. Non-promotional information may be discussed, but no direct call to action may be included at any point. Phone numbers, addresses, and websites may be provided “for more information.” 

2. Non-Profit Fundraising Content: Duarte’s departmental organizations and producers may request in writing to use Duarte’s channels for charitable fund-raising purposes. The City must authorize in writing any use of Duarte’s channel for fundraising programs before they are scheduled.

3. Technical Quality Standards: The City understands that many programs may be submitted by producers with limited technical experience and/or equipment. Content created with less than state-of-the-art camcorders, mobile devices, and editing equipment are permissible. However, it is necessary that each program offered for airing on Duarte’s PEG channel maintain optimal technical quality standards. Poor technical quality, including but not limited to compromised audio, missing audio, unstable footage, and/or blurry footage, may interfere with a viewer’s ability to appreciate program content or continue watching Duarte’s PEG channel. At the discretion of staff, such content may not be aired.

4. Violations: It is the responsibility of staff not to air programs that are found to be in violation of policies and guidelines for channel use, or in accordance with and subject to applicable law, are determined to contain obscenity or other illegal content. Programs that are found in violation may not be scheduled, scheduled programs may not be aired, and programs may be interrupted during air or may not be repeated. Staff will use discretion in assessing the severity of the violation and appropriate follow-up. Staff may discuss concerns with the producer and make every effort to rectify the case, including documenting the issue and follow-up. The producer may be required to provide information in writing. If Duarte and the producer cannot come to an agreement, the matter will be referred to the City Manager’s Office for final decision. Duarte may use discretion in limiting or prohibiting PEG channel air time for producers with multiple violations of this PEG Policy or any local, state, or federal law.

5. Content Featuring Minors: Producers requesting air time for any programming involving minors must provide written parental permissions for their appearance on Duarte’s PEG channel prior to air time.

V. POLICY COMPLIANCE

Producers requesting channel time must be familiar with and carefully adhere to these policies and related guidelines. All programs submitted for channel time are subject to staff review to ensure compliance with the policies and procedures documented in this PEG Policy. Staff is directed to use discretion in withholding any program found to be in violation, pending further review. 

By submitting a Program Submittal Request Form, the producer also submits a Statement of Compliance, which holds the producer liable for program content. In submitting the form, the producer warrants that the program does not include:

A. Any material that is libelous, slanderous, or otherwise a defamation of character, or material that is an unlawful invasion of privacy.

B. Any material that violates state or federal laws relating to obscenity. Obscenity is not considered protected speech under the First Amendment to the United States Constitution.

C. Any obscene or indecent material is prohibited.

D. Any advertising or material that promotes any commercial product or service.

E. Any solicitation or appeal for funds except for non-profit fundraising content with written approval from the City.

F.Any unlawful use of copyrighted material.

G. Any content in violation of local, state, or federal law not expressly stated in the Duarte PEG Policy.

In submitting the Program Submittal Request Form, producers also agree to indemnify and hold harmless the City of Duarte, its staff, consultants, contractors, volunteers, and employees, from any and all claims, demands, damages, or other liabilities, including legal fees and expenses that may arise as a result of showing the program.

Public access producers shall be aware that under the federal Cable Communications Policy Act of 1984 as amended, whoever transmits over any cable system any matter that is obscene or otherwise unprotected by the Constitution of the United States is liable for substantial criminal penalties. Any civil or criminal complaints or other legal matters resulting from display of a program will be referred to the producer who requested the air time. A producer who requests the display of a program produced by someone else assumes liability. 

The City of Duarte does not provide legal advice to producers.