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Copyright Lexipol, LLC 2021/07/29, All Rights Reserved. Published with permission by Santa Monica Police Department Electronic Mail - 1 Santa Monica Police Department Santa Monica Police Department Policy Manual Electronic Mail 204.1 PURPOSE AND SCOPE The purpose of this policy is to establish guidelines for the proper use and application of the Department’s electronic mail (email) system by employees of this Department. Email is a communication tool available to employees to enhance efficiency in the performance of job duties and is to be used in accordance with generally accepted business practices and current law (e.g., California Public Records Act). Messages transmitted over the email system must only be those that involve official business activities or contain information essential to employees for the accomplishment of business- related tasks and/or communication directly related to the business, administration, or practices of the Department. 204.2 EMAIL RIGHT OF PRIVACY All email messages, including any attachments, that are transmitted over Department networks are considered Department records and therefore are Department property. The Department reserves the right to access, audit or disclose, for any lawful reason, any message including any attachment that is transmitted over its email system or that is stored on any Department system. The email system is not a confidential system since all communications transmitted on, to or from the system are the property of the Department. Therefore, the email system is not appropriate for confidential communications . If a communication must be private, an alternative method to communicate the message should be used instead of email. Employees using the Department’s email system shall have no expectation of privacy concerning communications utilizing the system. Emplo yees should not use personal accounts to exchange email or other information that is related to the official business of the Department. 204.3 PROHIBITED USE OF EMAIL Sending derogatory, defamatory, obscene, disrespectful, sexually suggestive and harassing or any other inappropriate messages on the email system is prohibited and may result in discipline. Email messages addressed to the entire department ("police group") are only to be used for official City business related items that are of particular interest to all users. Using this method of communication for inappropriate social notifications (including but not limited to party invitations, personal advertisements, etc.,) and trading of overtime assignments is strictly prohibited. It is a violation of this policy to transmit a message under another user’s name. Users are strongly encouraged to log off the network when their computer is unattended. This added security measure would minimize the misuse of an individual’s email, nam e and/or password by others. Policy 204 Copyright Lexipol, LLC 2021/07/29, All Rights Reserved. Published with permission by Santa Monica Police Department Electronic Mail - 2 Santa Monica Police Department Santa Monica Police Department Policy Manual Electronic Mail 204.4 EMAIL RECORD MANAGEMENT Email may, depending upon the individual content, be a public record under the California Public Records Act and must be managed in accordance with the established records retention schedule and in compliance with state law. The City of Santa Monica's Information Systems Department (ISD) ensures email messages are retained and recoverable in accordance with the City's Administrative Instruction Manual under "Employee Access, Use, Retention and Destruction of Electronic Communications," (Numbers II-4-10). 204.5 EMPLOYEE EMAIL RESPONSIBILITIES All employees are required to check their email at least once every work day. All members at the rank of Lieutenant or Administrator and above and any Unit Sergeant or Supervisor shall use the email notification system to advise email recipients of absences extending more than three days. The message is to indicate the absence period, the person designated to be in charge during the period of absence, and the email/telephone number of the designee.