HomeMy WebLinkAboutPolicy-Procedures for Board and Commission - 4-step_process.11-16Policy and Procedures:
Distribution and Posting requirements for Board and Commission Agendas and Packets
Time requirements – 24 hour minimum notification
All board/commission meeting agendas and packets must be posted at least 24 hours in advance of
the meeting. This is a minimum notification requirement; posting agendas and packets further in
advance of a meeting is recommended as technical issues may delay your posting and require your
meeting to be rescheduled.
Agenda and packet posting and notification requirements – a four step process
There are four steps required for notifying the public of a board or commission meeting: 1) bulletin
board posting, 2) website, 3) media release, and 4) event calendar posting. Training for electronic
posting is provided by contacting the CommunicationsTeam@iowa-city.org.
Postings are handled by appointed staff from each department responsible for their Board or
Commission agendas and packets. It is necessary that each responsible department have
designated and trained personnel to act as backup in case of an absence.
I. Bulletin Board posting and removal
A copy of the agenda must be submitted to the City Clerk’s Office for posting at least 24 hours in
advance of the meeting on the locked bulletin board nearest the front entrance in the City Hall
Lobby. This is done to comply with the notification requirements of the Iowa Open Meetings Law. It
is preferable to provide more than the legally required 24-hour notice. The City Clerk will remove and
retain outdated agendas from only the City Hall Lobby bulletin boards for archival.
For boards/commissions that meet at sites other than City Hall, duplicate agendas are also to be
posted in a public area of the building where they will meet. Responsible department’s trained
designees are in charge of removing outdated agendas from these bulletin boards. All public
meetings must take place in locations that are accessible to persons with disabilities. All parts of the
building do not need to be accessible but the parking (if provided), the path of travel into and through
the facility, the meeting area, and the restrooms must be.
II. Website posting
All meeting agendas and packets must be posted on the City’s official website, www.icgov.org, by
the department’s trained designees, abiding by the 24-hour minimum time requirement. Posting the
agenda and packet on the website is one of the City’s methods for advising the news media of a
meeting, and therefore, is legally required pursuant to Iowa Code section 21.41(1). Allow time for
technical delays that may require your staff to reschedule a meeting. Please post meetings as early
as possible and make sure the meeting agenda and packet is visible on the City website before
issuing your media release.
Amending Agendas and packets previously posted
If an item is added to an agenda or packet previously posted, a revised agenda and packet
must be posted that abides by the 24-hour time requirement for notification. The revised
agenda and packet must state the changes included at the beginning of the post to explain the
reason for re-posting. Follow steps 1 through 3 to complete the requirements for posting of the
agenda and packet.
Cancelling meetings previously posted
If the meeting is cancelled, a notice stating same shall be posted on the bulletin board(s) as
soon as possible. Follow steps 1 through 4 to complete the notification requirements.
Meeting Not Held (No Quorum)
If the meeting is not held due to lack of a quorum, send an email to the City Clerk’s office
stating that no meeting was held and update the website and follow steps 2 through 4 to
complete the notification requirements.
Late handouts (distributed after packet posting AND materials handed out at the meeting)
Late handouts must be provided to the City Clerk’s Office for archival as soon as possible after
the meeting.
III. Media release
Issuing a media release announcing an upcoming meeting is the responsibility of each department
by a trained designee, using the GovDelivery media release system, and abiding by the 24-hour
minimum time requirement. Questions regarding media releases can be directed to the
Communications Office by emailing CommunicationsTeam@iowa-city.org.
Avoid posting materials on Friday afternoons when there are limited resources to assist with issues.
If an error should occur, please contact WebSupport@iowa-city.org for assistance. After hours and
on weekends, please call the IT Help Line at 319-356-5411.
IV. Web Event Calendar posting
Posting a meeting to the City website’s event calendar is the responsibility of each department and
carried out by a trained department designee. Posting the meeting notice on the website’s event
calendar is one of the methods required for advising the news media of a meeting, and therefore,
legally required pursuant to Iowa Code section 21.41(1), abiding by the 24-hour minimum time
requirement.
Questions on website event calendar posting procedures can be directed to the Communications
Office by emailing CommunicationsTeam@iowa-city.org.
II. Posting a meeting packet to the website
You will need three URLS: (addresses may show up with “www8.” until the server conversion is complete)
www.iowa-city.org/laserfiche (internal Laserfiche access only – where documents are updated and stored)
www.iowa-city.org/weblink (public Laserfiche portal – documents available to the public)
www.icgov.org
Board and Commission Agenda Packet
1) Prepare agenda with meeting packet materials
2) Create and save PDF of complete packet for posting
In Laserfiche
1) Log-in to Laserfiche
2) Select “Web documents”
3) Select “Boards, Commissions, Committees”
4) Select the Board/Commission folder you’re posting for
5) Select the folder for the year you’re posting in
6) Import the file by choosing the up arrow on the right hand side of the screen
7) Select “Browse” and choose the file you want to import
In Weblink
1) Go to Weblink and follow the same file path: Web documents> Boards, Commissions, Committees
>Choose Board/Commission>Choose Year
2) Right click the document you want to share and click “copy shortcut” or “copy link address”
In icgov.org
1) Log-in to icgov.org
2) Scroll to bottom of page
3) Click on “Admin Log in”
4) Username is your FULL city email address
5) Click log-in
6) Click on “City Government”
7) Click on “Boards, Commissions and Committees” located in the list on the right side of the page
8) Click on the Board/Commission you’re posting the agenda for
9) Click on “Edit” tab
10) Use (quad arrows) to view full screen (located in the toolbar)
11) Change the date on the previous agenda posted to the date of the current agenda you’re posting
12) Highlight the text you just updated
13) Click on link box (located in the toolbar)
14) Select “URL” for link type
15) Paste link from the shortcut that was copied in Weblink into URL box
16) Click OK
17) Scroll to bottom of page and click “Save”
Go to Step III.
III. Sending a media release (specific for Boards and Commissions)
Access the GovDelivery media release system here: https://admin.govdelivery.com/session/new
(Skip 1-3 if you use this link)
1) Go to www.icgov.org
2) Scroll to the bottom of the page and under the ICgov.org heading, click on “Employee Resources”
3) Click on “E-subscription log-in”
4) Log-in using your City email address and the password you selected, then press sign-in
5) Click on “Bulletins” on the left-hand side of the screen
6) Click on “Create Advanced Bulletin”
7) Select your template. Each template is labeled accordingly. (if you are unsure of which template to use, e-mail
CommunicationsTeam@iowa-city-org)
Move your move over the template you would like to use and click on “Use this template”
8) In the “Subject” box, enter your headline text. Avoid using all-caps in headlines and body text.
9) Fill in current date, contact information, and phone number.
Enter today’s date with slashes and the full year: 6/14/2016
The “Contact” field should include a name and staff title. Occasionally, the contact will be someone who
works outside of the City organization. Please provide their name, office or organization affiliation, and
title, such as: Mary Smith, Johnson County Auditor.
Enter phone numbers with dashes, and always include the area code: 319-356-5000
10) In the “Headline” section, enter your headline (the same as what you entered in the “Subject” box above). If this
is for a Board or Commission meeting, the headline will already be filled.
11) In the body copy section, fill in dates and times.
12) Click on the “Send Test” (which emails you and/or others a preview of the release) or “Preview” buttons located
in the right hand corner to review your article prior to publishing. To send a test bulletin, enter the email
addresses of people you want to review it. It is important to have someone else review your media release prior
to issuing, as mistakes can most easily be avoided this way. If you are new to GovDelivery, please “Send Test” to
CommunicationsTeam@iowa-city-org for review prior to publishing.
13) After review, make any necessary edits.
14) Select your recipient group by clicking on the blue arrow next to the “To” box.
15) Select the appropriate subscriber list. If you are sending a media release regarding a board, commission or
committee meeting, select the “Boards, Commissions and Committees” box, which will open up the full list.
Deselect all boards, commissions and committees that don’t pertain to your target group.
16) Click “Save and Next” at the top of the page.
17) The “Review” page will indicate whether you have missed a step somewhere in the process. If you see a gold
box with an exclamation point, you have some additions or corrections to make on previous pages. The box will
tell you what’s missing. Click the “Edit” button on the right to return to previous pages to add or correct the
information. When finished, click on the “Save and next” buttons on the first and second pages until you are
back at the “Review” page. Click on “Save Changes.”
18) Review your information a final time through the “Send Test” or “Preview” functions.
19) If it looks good, click “Send Now”
A. It will ask you again if you are sure you want to send. If you do, click “Yes”
B. Congratulations, you have sent a media release! Go to Step IV.
Revisions
If you find an error in your release after publishing, you may need to reissue the release; depending upon the nature of
the error. Minor spelling errors do not need to be reissued, but need to be edited for the website article and sharing on
social media. You will need to state the reason for the reissue at the beginning of the release.
1) To access the GovDelivery article, repeat steps 1 through 5 above.
2) Next, select the “Sent” tab and select the article that you issued.
3) Select “Open a Copy,” then make your edits.
4) Follow steps 12 through 21 (above) to send your release.
IV. Adding a Boards and Commissions meeting to the website event calendar
(www.icgov.org)
1) Log-in to www.icgov.org:
a. Scroll to bottom of page
b. Click on “Admin Log in” in the lower right corner
c. Username is your FULL EMAIL address
d. Click log-in
2) Click Add content (top left of screen)
3) On Basic Information Tab (enter the following)
a. Select Editorial group – scroll down and choose “Boards, Commissions and Committees.”
b. Select Title. This is what will appear on the website. Example: “Community Police Review Board
Meeting”
c. Select date and time of event (uncheck “Show end date” if you do not have an ending time)
d. Add location
i. Select Country – United States
ii. Add location and address
e. Select contact person – this must be a person who is listed as a person in the system. If you cannot locate
the individual in the dropdown list, contact the CommunicationsTeam@iowa-city.org.
f. Add description:
Example: “Community Police Review Board Meeting”
“View the agenda and learn more about the Board” (add link to the board or commission page
where your agenda information is located)
To add link:
i. Click on link box (located in the toolbar)
ii. Select “URL” for link type
iii. Copy and Paste link from webpage into URL box
iv. Click OK
Scroll back up to the top of the page. Click on “Organization” on the left-hand side of the page
4) On left tool bar, select the “Organization Tab” (enter the following):
a. Select “Event Type” – Select “Meeting” from the dropdown list
b. Select “Event Category” – You must choose “Meeting” and can choose up to two categories
Scroll to bottom of the page and click SAVE - DONE