Can city employee work time be used to advocate for a Council referred ballot measure?
NO – Once the issue is certified to the ballot, no public employee work time may be used to redistribute any material that advocates a political position on the measure. City employees may not use city resources for any type of political activity during working hours, including but not limited to, interoffice mail, telephone, FAX machine, Internet, email or photocopy machines to advocate for or against the measure. While city employees are not prohibited from any discussion of the subject of the measure, a distinction must be made between an action that supports or opposes the measure and the performance of duties normally expected to be required of a public employee as part of his or her job. (ORS 260.432 and City Human Resources Administrative Rules 4.06, 4.08 & 4.
NO – Once the issue is certified to the ballot, no public employee work time may be used to redistribute any material that advocates a political position on the measure. City employees may not use city resources for any type of political activity during working hours, including but not limited to, interoffice mail, telephone, FAX machine, Internet, email or photocopy machines to advocate for or against the measure. While city employees are not prohibited from any discussion of the subject of the measure, a distinction must be made between an action that supports or opposes the measure and the performance of duties normally expected to be required of a public employee as part of his or her job.
