Social Media Comment & Engagement Policy for the Arkansas Department of Energy and Environment
I. General Principles and Legal Foundation
1. Limited Public Forum Designation: The Arkansas Department of Energy and Environment’s (E&E) social media pages (e.g., Facebook, X/Twitter, LinkedIn, etc.) are designated as a Limited Public Forum. This means that while public comment is generally welcomed on the specific topics discussed, the Department can enforce reasonable, viewpoint-neutral restrictions on speech, primarily related to the subject matter and orderly management of the forum.
2. Freedom of Speech (First Amendment): The Department will not delete, hide, or ban users based on their expressed political opinion, criticism of E&E policies, or viewpoint, even if the content is negative, unfavorable, or offensive to staff. Viewpoint discrimination is prohibited.
3. Public Records (Arkansas FOIA): All content posted or communicated on official E&E social media channels, by both the Department and the public, is a public record subject to the Arkansas Freedom of Information Act. This requires appropriate recordkeeping/archiving of all comments, even those that are removed (see Section III).
II. Comment Moderation: Content-Based Restrictions
The Department reserves the right to remove, hide, or refuse to post user-generated content that falls into the following viewpoint-neutral categories. This list should be clearly published on all social media platforms (e.g., in the “About” section or a pinned post).
Category of Prohibited Content
Rationale (Limited Public Forum/Safety)
Off-Topic/Irrelevant
Content that is clearly not relevant to the mission, activities, or topic of the original E&E post. (Must be enforced fairly to prevent being a pretense for viewpoint discrimination.)
Obscenity, Profanity, or Vulgar Language
Content containing graphic sexual language, profanity, or is otherwise legally obscene.
Hate Speech & Discrimination
Content that is threatening, harassing, discriminatory, or promotes, fosters, or perpetuates discrimination on the basis of race, creed, color, age, religion, gender, national origin, disability, or any other legally protected category.
Threats & Illegal Activity
Content that is threatening, harassing, libelous, defamatory, incites or promotes violence, or advocates or encourages illegal activity.
Personal Attacks
Personal attacks on individuals (E&E employees, other users, or private residents). Legitimate criticism of Department policy or practices is permitted.
Sensitive/Private Information
Comments containing personally identifiable information (PII) such as Social Security Numbers, phone numbers, home addresses, or other private/confidential information.
Commercial Solicitation & Spam
Posts selling or promoting commercial products, services, or private business enterprises. Also includes repeated posts of identical or very similar content (spam).
Political Campaigning
Content that promotes or opposes specific social causes, political campaigns, candidates, or ballot propositions. (Content-based, not viewpoint-based, as E&E is a non-partisan state agency).
Copyright/Intellectual Property
Content that appears to violate the intellectual property or copyright of any other party.
Emergency Reporting
Do not use social media to report a spill, leak, or emergency. Comments directing users to the proper contact (e.g., Arkansas Division of Emergency Management) for emergencies are permitted.
III. Monitoring and Records Management Procedures
Monitoring:
· Social media accounts will be monitored during regular business hours (Monday-Friday, 8 a.m. – 5 p.m. Central Time), excluding state holidays.
· Comments submitted outside of these hours will be reviewed and moderated as soon as possible on the next business day.
Comment Removal (Crucial for Legal Compliance):
1. Do Not Edit: Comments will not be edited. If content violates the policy, the entire comment will be removed/hidden.
2. Documentation is Mandatory: For every instance of a removed or hidden post, the E&E social media administrator must thoroughly document the action. This documentation is required to defend against a First Amendment claim and to comply with FOIA.
· Screenshot: Take a screenshot of the original post before it is removed or hidden.
· Reason for Removal: Clearly note the specific section of the Social Media Comment Policy that the content violated.
· Date and Time: Record the date and time of the original post and the date and time of removal.
3. Hiding vs. Deleting: When possible, hiding a comment (which makes it invisible to the public but preserves it in the backend for records) is often preferred over outright deletion, as some platforms’ deletion functions may permanently destroy the public record.
Banning Users:
· Users may not be blocked or banned except under rare circumstances. A user may be blocked or banned from commenting on E&E-administered pages only for repeated and egregious failure to adhere to this policy. This action must also be thoroughly documented and approved by the E&E Chief of Communications.
IV. Employee Guidelines
· Official Voice: Only E&E personnel specifically authorized by the E&E Chief of Communications are permitted to speak on behalf of the Department on official social media channels.
· Personal Use: When E&E employees comment on Department-related topics on their personal social media accounts, they should:
· Disclose that they are an E&E employee.
· Clearly state that the opinions expressed are personal and do not represent the official views of the Arkansas Department of Energy and Environment.
V. Recommended Disclaimer
A clear and visible disclaimer should be posted on all E&E social media pages (e.g., in the “About” section or as a pinned post):
“This is the official social media page for the Arkansas Department of Energy and Environment (E&E). We welcome your comments and engagement on the specific topics posted on this page. This page is a Limited Public Forum. E&E reserves the right to hide or delete content that violates the terms outlined in our full Social Media Comment Policy (link to full policy), including but not limited to content that is off-topic, obscene, constitutes a personal attack, or promotes illegal activity. We do not remove comments solely based on viewpoint or criticism of the Department. All content posted here is subject to the Arkansas Freedom of Information Act (FOIA). If you need to report an environmental emergency, please call the Arkansas Division of Emergency Management 501-683-6705 instead of posting here.”