The Detroit News reported yesterday that some local Southeast Michigan governments are beginning to ban the use of mobile electronic devices by public officials during city council meetings. Some are even going so far as to place emailing, blogging, Tweeting, Facebooking and other forms of electronic communication off limits entirely during public meetings.
Communities like Royal Oak, Sterling Heights and even liberal, hipster Ann Arbor feel that if their elected officials are emailing or texting during meetings, then it must be to discuss city business, which is in violation of the Open Meetings Act. Transparency in government must absolutely be protected, but I can’t help but think an outright ban on these communications tools goes one step too far.
What if an elected official wanted to post a proposed amendment to a policy while sitting on the dais and receive instant feedback from constituents before casting a vote? What if a politician is sitting in a committee hearing and wants to use an iPad to fact-check testimony? What if government officials want to save on paper costs by receiving meeting agendas and minutes on their mobile devices?
These are efficiencies that should be embraced, not banned. The problem is, how do you ensure these new communication tools are being used for the appropriate purpose? I’m not exactly sure what the solution is, but there has to be some middle ground.
What do you think?