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Electronic Communications Policy – B0011

BOARD COMMITTEE RESPONSIBLE FOR THIS POLICY:

Administrative Committee

ARTICLE I. PURPOSE
The purpose of this Policy is to establish standard operating procedures, guidelines, and clear and concise direction regarding the retention of e-mails, including their attachments, in the possession of the Tri-Counties Regional Center (“TCRC”). The intent of this Policy is to prevent the unauthorized access to or disclosure of sensitive information prepared, owned, used, or retained by TCRC and to comply with the California Electronic Communications Privacy Act11, California Public Records Act (“CPRA”)2 and all other state and federal regulatory requirements.

ARTICLE II. DEFINITIONS

Section 2.1 Definitions

  1.  Account shall mean any private or TCRC e-mail account used for TCRC Business.
  2. TCRC Business TCRC business shall be construed broadly to mean information relating to the conduct of the public’s business or communications concerning matters that support TCRC’s mission.
  3. TCRC Network any Internet access, computer server, computer network, intranet, local area network, wireless network, e-mail system, cloud storage system, or file-sharing system owned or made available by TCRC.
  4. TCRC Personnel shall collectively refer to all TCRC employees, board members3, appointed officials, and anyone who prepares, owns, uses, or retains public records on behalf of TCRC.
  5. TCRC Staff any employee of TCRC and any other non-employee in lawful possession of electronic communications related to TCRC Business.
  6. CPRA Analyst Public Records Analyst or designee.
  7. CPRA Portal is a web-based system where members of the public may submit CPRA requests to TCRC and TCRC may respond, including the production of records.
  8. CPRA Request is a request by a person4 to inspect and/or to receive a copy of TCRC records. Commonly requested records include e-mails related to a particular subject matter, and TCRC contracts.
  9. Deletion complete destruction of e-mail without permitting duplicates, either electronic or hard copies.
  10. Electronic Communications any and all electronic transmissions, and every other means of recording upon any tangible thing in any form of communication or representation, including letters, words, pictures, sounds, or symbols, or combinations thereof, and any record thereby created, regardless of the manner in which the record has been stored. Without limiting the nature of the foregoing, “electronic communications” include e-mails, texts, voicemails, and include communications on or within commercial applications (“Apps”) such as Zoom, Facebook Messenger, Twitter, WhatsApp, etc.
  11. Electronic Device a device depending on the principles of electronics and using the manipulation of electron flow for its operation, including but not limited to cellular telephones, laptops and desktop computers, hotspots, tablets, pagers, cameras, televisions, and DVD/CD players.
  12. Electronic Mail or (“E-mail”) messages sent within TCRC’s Electronic Messaging application.
  13. Electronic Messaging Account any account that creates, sends, receives, or stores electronic communications, such as e-mail messages or text messages, or voicemail messages.
  14. Excessive Use is defined as “Excessive” if it interferes with normal job functions, impacts responsiveness, and/or the ability to perform daily job activities.
  15. Exchange E-mail Server the server used to store TCRC’s electronic messages.
  16. Listservs a messaging function hosted by server computers that automatically mails messages to subscribers and can be referred to as “electronic bulletin boards.”
  17. Public Record shall mean “Public Record” as defined in the CPRA.5 The CPRA defines “public records” as “any writing containing information relating to the conduct of the public’s business prepared, owned, used, or retained by any state or local agency regardless of physical form or characteristics” and further defines a “writing” as “any handwriting, typewriting, printing, photostating, photographing, photocopying, transmitting by electronic mail or facsimile, and every other means of recording upon any tangible thing any form of communication or representation, including letters, words, pictures, sounds, or symbols, or combinations thereof, and any record thereby created, regardless of the manner in which the record has been stored.”6
  18. Retention preservation of an e-mail in such a way that does not permit additions, deletions, or changes to the original document, without creating a duplicate of the record.
  19. Writing shall mean any typewriting, printing, photostating, photographing, photocopying, transmitting by electronic mail or facsimile, and every other means of recording upon any tangible thing any form of communication or representation, including letters, words, pictures, sounds, or symbols, or combination thereof, and any record thereby created, regardless of the manner in which the record has been stored.

Section 2.2 General Scope

This Policy shall apply to all TCRC Personnel who may have access to or use of the TCRC Network and shall be interpreted to be consistent with other agency policies. This includes all who may have been issued TCRC-owned technology or a TCRC-issued electronic messaging account, including all TCRC Personnel and TCRC Staff. Furthermore, this Policy applies when TCRC-issued technology is used on or off TCRC property and when non-TCRC devices access the TCRC Network or private information prepared, used, or retained by TCRC.

Hardware and software issued to TCRC Personnel is the property of TCRC and/or the State of California pursuant to TCRC’s contract with the Department of Developmental Services (“DDS”) and may only be used for approved purposes.

Personal use of the TCRC Network, that is deemed to be excessive, interferes with performance by TCRC Personnel, or that is intended for personal monetary gain, is strictly prohibited.

Those in violation of this Policy could be subject to disciplinary action up to and including dismissal and/or termination of contract, as described in further detail under the “Violations” Section of this Policy.

All questions regarding the interpretation or applicability of this Policy should be directed to the Chief Information Officer for clarification.

ARTICLE III. POLICY & PROCEDURES

Section 3.1 Policy and Procedures

  1. All TCRC Personnel shall be assigned a TCRC-issued Electronic Messaging Account.
  2. TCRC accounts shall be used to conduct TCRC Business.
  3. All TCRC Personnel shall, within 15 days following the adoption of this Policy, search all private, non-TCRC-issued electronic messaging accounts to which they have user access and locate any electronic communications that might constitute a Public Record, because it involves TCRC Business, as set forth above. All such communications shall be forwarded to the TCRC Personnel’s TCRC provided account. To the extent the TCRC Personnel believes that any part of such communications contains personal matters not related to the conduct of the public’s business, the TCRC Personnel shall provide a declaration, as set forth in paragraphs 10 and 11, below.
  4. The TCRC account, along with the access to TCRC’s account server, are solely for TCRC and TCRC Personnel’s use to conduct TCRC Business and shall not be used for personal business or political activities. Incidental use of TCRC electronic messaging accounts for personal use by TCRC Personnel is permissible, though not encouraged.
  5. If a TCRC Personnel receives an electronic message regarding TCRC Business on their non-TCRC electronic messaging account, or circumstances require such person to conduct TCRC business on a non-TCRC account, the TCRC Personnel shall either: (a) copy (“cc”) any communication from a TCRC Personnel’s personal electronic messaging account to their TCRC electronic messaging account; or (b) forward the associated electronic communication to their TCRC account no later than 10 days after the original creation or transmission of the electronic communication.
  6. TCRC Personnel shall endeavor to ask persons sending electronic communications regarding TCRC Business to a personal account to instead utilize the TCRC Personnel’s account, and likewise shall endeavor to ask a person sending an electronic communication regarding non-TCRC Business to use the TCRC Personnel’s personal or non-TCRC electronic messaging account.
  7. TCRC Personnel understand they have no expectation of privacy in the content of any electronic communication sent or received on a TCRC account or communication utilizing TCRC servers. TCRC-provided electronic devices, including devices for which TCRC pays a stipend or reimburses the TCRC Personnel, are subject to TCRC review and disclosure of electronic communications regarding TCRC Business.
  8. TCRC Personnel understand that electronic communications regarding TCRC Business that are created, sent, received or stored on an electronic messaging account, may be subject to the CPRA, even if created, sent, received, or stored on a personal account or personal device.
  9. In the event a CPRA request is received by TCRC seeking electronic communications of TCRC Personnel, the Public Records Analyst shall promptly transmit the request to the applicable TCRC Personnel whose electronic communications are sought. The Public Records Analyst shall communicate the scope of the information requested to the applicable TCRC Personnel, and an estimate of the time within which the Public Records Analyst intends to provide any responsive electronic communications to the requesting party.
  10. It shall be the duty of each TCRC Personnel receiving such a request from the Public Records Analyst to promptly conduct a good faith and diligent search of their personal electronic messaging accounts and devices for responsive electronic communications. The TCRC Personnel shall then promptly transmit any potentially responsive electronic communications to the Public Records Analyst. Such transmission shall be provided in sufficient time to enable the Public Records Analyst to adequately review and provide the nonexempt electronic communications to the requesting party.
  11. In the event a TCRC Personnel does not possess, or cannot with reasonable diligence recover, responsive electronic communications from the TCRC Personnel’s electronic messaging account, the TCRC Personnel shall so notify the Public Records Analyst by way of a written declaration, signed under penalty of perjury. In addition, a TCRC Personnel who withholds any electronic communication identified as potentially responsive must submit a declaration, signed under penalty of perjury with facts sufficient to show the information is “personal business” and not “public business” under the CPRA. The form of the declaration is attached hereto as Attachment A.
  12. It shall be the duty of the Public Records Analyst, in consultation with the TCRC’s General Counsel, to determine whether a particular electronic communication, or any portion of that electronic communication, is exempt from disclosure. To that end, the responding TCRC Personnel shall provide the Public Records Analyst with all potentially responsive electronic communications, and, if in doubt, shall err on the side of caution and should “over produce.”. If an electronic communication involved both “public business” and a personal communication, the responding TCRC Personnel may redact the personal communication portion of the electronic communication prior to transmitting the electronic communication to the Public Records Analyst. The responding TCRC Personnel shall provide facts sufficient to show that the information is “personal business” and not “public business” by declaration. In the event a question arises as to whether or not a particular communication, or any portion of it, is a public record or purely a personal communication, the TCRC Personnel should consult with the Public Records Analyst or the TCRC General Counsel. The responding TCRC Personnel shall be required to sign a declaration, in a form acceptable to the TCRC General Counsel, attesting under penalty of perjury, that a good faith and diligent search was conducted and that any electronic communication, or portion thereof, not provided in response to the CPRA request is not TCRC Business.
  13. TCRC Personnel understand that electronic communications regarding TCRC Business are subject to TCRC’s approved Records Retention and Destruction Policy (TCADD B0005), even if those electronic communications are or were created, sent, received or stored on a TCRC Personnel’s personal electronic messaging account. As such, unless the TCRC Personnel has cc’d/transmitted electronic communications in accordance with paragraph 5 above, that TCRC Personnel must retain all electronic communications regarding TCRC Business, in accordance with TCRC’s Records Retention and Destruction Policy, regardless of whether such electronic communication is originally sent or received on a personal electronic messaging account.
  14. This Policy does not waive any exemption to disclosure that may apply under the CPRA.

Section 3.2 Retention

All TCRC e-mails shall be maintained in accordance with TCRC’s approved Records Retention and Destruction Policy, except as provided below.

E-mails may be subject to longer retention periods as determined by the content of the e-mail.

A. Applicable Retention Period

  1. TCRC Personnel may be required to retain e-mails subject to a longer retention period. This is determined by applicable laws, regulations, TCRC policies, and/or Records Retention and Destruction Policy. Specifically, e-mails subject to a legal hold, subpoena, CPRA request, claim against TCRC, administrative charge or investigation, or similar proceeding, which is in progress or which can reasonably be anticipated, shall also be retained.
  2. TCRC personnel shall consider an e-mail’s attachments when determining whether the e-mail needs to be retained.
  3. It is the responsibility of the sender of an internal e-mail to determine the retention period of an e-mail based on the subject matter of the e-mail.
  4. It is the responsibility of the recipient of an e-mail received from outside TCRC to determine the retention period of an e-mail based on the subject matter of the e-mail.
  5. TCRC personnel may extend the retention period of an e-mail if it has significant or continuing business or historical value.

B. Storing E-mails

  1. TCRC personnel shall not use PST files to store e-mails outside of the Exchange E-mail Server. Any existing PST files shall be provided to the Information Technology Department for inclusion into an e-mail archive solution accessible by the employee providing such data.
  2. Upon separation of an employee, a copy of that individual’s TCRC e-mail account shall be created and maintained for no longer than 90 days following a review of the e-mails that may need to be retained longer.
  3. E-mails shall be deleted, when permitted by law and policy, in a timely and cost-efficient manner so as to destroy the writing without permitting duplicates, either electronic or hard copies.

Section 3.3 Legal

If any paragraph, sentence, clause, or phrase of this Policy is held unlawful or invalid for any reason, said unlawfulness or invalidity shall not affect the remaining portions of this Policy.

Additionally, due to the ever changing facets of the realm of Information Technology and its related areas, this Policy shall not be construed to be all inclusive. Revisions to this Policy shall be made periodically in an effort to keep up with changing technology.

Approvals:

  • 2025 09 05: TCADD Board

  1. Pen. Code, § 1546 ↩︎
  2. Gov. Code, § 7920.000 et seq ↩︎
  3. Welf. & Inst. Code, § 4622 ↩︎
  4. Gov. Code, § 7920.520 ↩︎
  5. Gov. Code, § 7920.000 et seq. ↩︎
  6. Gov. Code, § 7920.530 ↩︎