HCPSS MPIA Request #2020-199

Requested Information
Regarding use of social media on behalf of HCPSS business and considered public and in reference to all such specific social media accounts for all BOE members and Superintendent. Request is to release all account names that are blocked by such social media accounts along with reasons why they are blocked.
Date Received
Status
Complete
Response Notes

We have previously responded under the MPIA that certain accounts of school system officials can be considered public, specifically for content and actions which are “created or received by a school system official in connection with the transaction of HCPSS business” as defined in HCPSS Policy 3050: Records Management, and were made or received “by a unit or instrumentality in connection with the transaction of public business” as defined under MPIA GP § 4-101(j). Responsive to this request, and per clarification that the specific social media platforms you were interested in are Twitter, Facebook, WhatsApp and Instagram, we are providing information where Board members or the Superintendent use these platforms in the manner described above and have indicated accounts are blocked:

  • As indicated in our response to MPIA 2020-135, accounts currently blocked by the @Sabina_Taj Twitter account are due to obscene content where the actions undertaken were due to personal reasons and thus, the contents do not fall within the parameters of a public record under the MPIA.
  • The accounts currently blocked by the @Kirsten4BOE Twitter account are due to spam content where the actions undertaken were due to personal reasons and thus, the contents do not fall within the parameters of a public record under the MPIA.

*Some request language is summarized to include the requester's specific document requests and legally protected information (such as personally identifiable information of a student) or personal, defamatory and malicious content removed at the discretion of the school system.

**Responses containing legally protected information available only to the person of interest are omitted from the above report.

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