CSMFO Podcasts

Latest Technologies for Local Government

September 19th, 2007

Learn how you can use the latest technologies to serve your communities better and work smarter. See live demonstrations via this special webinar.

Panelists:

• John Kamensky, Senior Fellow IBM Gov’t Center
• Kirk Biglione, Oxford Media Works
• Laura Peabody, CIO, Walnut Creek (and MISAC President)
• Kristy Schmidt, Employee Relations Mgr., Santa Barbara
• Bill Statler, Finance & IT Director, San Luis Obispo

Questions for Panelists:

1. What tools can you use to communicate with constituents more effectively?
2. How can technology help you resolve difficult issues in your community?
3. What technologies can improve your internal operations?
4. How can you put the technology already on your desktop to better use?
5. How can you keep up on the latest trends?

Questions for Follow Up Discussion:

1. Where can we use technology in our agency to communicate more effectively with our constituents?
2. Where do we have difficult issues (internally or externally) that technology can help us resolve?
3. What are some specific priorities or actions that we can take now to boost our results?

This special session is cosponsored by:
Cal-ICMA Coaching Program www.cal-icma.org/coaching
CSMFO Coaching Program www.csmfo.org/coaching
Municipal Information Systems Association of California www.misac.org

• Download the PowerPoint presentation (includes web links referenced in presentation)
• Download the program audio
• IBM Government Blogging Report
• Links to various municipal blogs

Latest Technologies Questions and Answers:

1. Any examples of this kind of communication available to a multilingual
community and their residents? [blogs, wikis, second life]

Answer from Kirk Biglione:

Blogs and Wikis can be used with any language, and most of the popular applications are available in localized versions.

The following links may be useful if you’re using the WordPress blogging system:

- A free plugin called Gengo turns WordPress into a multi-lingual blogging system: http://jamietalbot.com/wp-hacks/gengo/

- Information on various localized versions of the WordPress blogging system:
http://codex.wordpress.org/WordPress_in_Your_Language

2. Do you know of any other City in CA that already has a blog besides City of Ventura?

Answer from Kristy Schmidt

This link provides a list of blogging Cities in the blogsphere:
http://californiacitynews.typepad.com/californiacitynewsorg/cityblogs.html

3. What ramifications are there for records management retention if an
agency were to create blogs or wikis?

Answer from Kirk Biglione:

I would expect the records management requirements to be the same as they are for any public website.

Blogging systems typically keep the full history of all posts online.

Wikis typically included all contributed content in addition to a complete change history.

For both blogs and wikis content is typically stored in a database. Database backup routines should be tailored to meet your specific records management policy.

Answer from Bill Statler:

While cities should consult with their City Attorney, I believe that any blogs on the City’s web site would be subject to the Public Records Act.

What’s this mean? Under the Public Records Act, electronic records are no different from hard copy records. For example, a “hard copy” letter must be retained for at least two years; and your hard copy reply must be retained for at least two years (perhaps longer, depending on your adopted retention schedules.); and destruction of those records requires City Attorney approval.

In short, the Public Records Act is applicable to all City e-records, including email. Stated simply, if a similar “hard copy” document (in this case, correspondence) would be subject the Public Records Act for retention, destruction and disclosure, then the comparable e-record is also subject to the Public Records Act. The only exception to this that I am aware of is for video recordings (such as you may make for surveillance or security monitoring purposes), which “only” have to be retained for one-year.

This doesn’t mean all blogs must be kept up on the web (or blog) site for two years: I think you can edit for “currency.” But if requested, I think you would need to have at least two years worth of blogs available.

Lastly, as correspondence to the City and reply correspondence back, I’m not sure that it matters if the blog site is maintained by the City or not, if it purports to be a “City” blog. If it was a blog maintained by someone, and a City staffer replied in an official capacity, then I suppose a case could be made that only the reply is a “record” under the Public Records Act.

Answer from Kristy Schmidt:

City Attorney should set this. It would be great to have all Cities agree on the same policy, maybe through the League of CA Cities’ Attorney’s Policy Committee?

4. Who is responsible for monitoring the new web technology? Have you need
to hire additional staff?

Answer from Kirk Biglione:

This will vary by organization. For some organizations this role may go to the Public Information Officer, others may assign it to someone in the City Manager’s office.

The key is that the role should be assigned to a staff member that a) understands new media and how it works, and b) has the time to properly monitor and respond to developments as they occur.

Answer from Kristy Schmidt:

We do have a “Webmaster” position. Information Systems is responsible for new web technology but that is limited to research, prototyping, and other deployment. Departments are responsible for content and monitoring.

5. Can the panelists suggest an add-on to view RSS in Microsoft Outlook?

Answer from Kirk Biglione:

Attensa for Outlook

Entry Filed under: Career Coaching