Part 2: Scope – What are “Communications”?
2.1
Our guidance applies to any communication by a Council, or a Member or employee or
office holder of a Council, or a Member of a Community Board, where:
- the Council meets the cost (wholly or in part); or
- the person making the communication does so in an official capacity on behalf of the Council or a Community Board.
2.2
We make no distinction between:
- mandatory and discretionary communications;
- communications in the Council’s own publications and the news media generally;
- Council-funded advertisements and other forms of publicity; or
- electronic (including web site or e-mail) and hard copy publication.
The underlying principles are the same in each case.
2.3
Common examples of communications by Councils include:
- statutory documents – such as draft, final, and summary versions of the Long Term Council Community Plan or an Annual Report under the LGA;
- information on a web site, or in a poster or pamphlet, about Council services available to the public, or the rights, entitlements, and responsibilities of people affected by a Council activity;
- newspapers and newsletters reporting Council news and activities;
- material explaining a particular proposal, decision, policy, or bylaw of the Council;
- marketing material promoting the Council, its communities, or a regional brand;
- Council-funded advertising about a particular event, proposal, or Council policy;
- educational material about issues affecting the community; and
- media releases initiating or responding to public comment about matters affecting the Council or its communities.
2.4
In a different category are communications by Members using Council resources or facilities. We address this type of communication in paragraphs 4.33-4.40 on pages 19-20.
2.5
The guide does not apply to:
- normal day-to-day correspondence between Members and their constituents on appropriate matters, except during a pre-election period when the content of the correspondence should not be inconsistent with Principle 12 on page 22; and
- communications by Members using their own resources.