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Public Records Laws and Social Media Retention in
Florida

Florida “Sunshine Laws:” Public Records Requirements and Social Media Compliance

The Florida Public Records Law, or Government-in-the-Sunshine Law, requires that government agencies preserve public records regardless of physical form. This requirement includes the digital records created through social media. These Florida social media laws mean that public agencies must retain records from social networks.

Social Media Records Guidelines from the Office of the Attorney General

The Office of the Attorney General of Florida mentions Facebook in their Government-in-the-Sunshine Manual guidelines for computer records. It lays the responsibility for capturing and retaining social media records in Florida on the agencies that create them.

Florida Social Media Records Management in Practice

The City of Tallahassee offers a great example of a comprehensive social media policy that clearly outlines the impact of Florida’s Sunshine Law on social media records.

HEAR FROM OUR CUSTOMERS

CivicPlus Social Media Archiving in Florida

Hear from one of the many cities, counties, and agencies meeting public record law requirements using the CivicPlus Social Media Archiving solution.

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“We were interested in expanding our social media presence but didn’t feel comfortable doing that without a plan for records compliance. [CivicPlus] made it easy for us to fulfill our requirements.”

– Sabrina Robertson, Nassau County

 

“[CivicPlus’ Social Media Archiving software] is a very user-friendly and affordable solution for archiving social media accounts. On average, it saves us four hours per week of manual archiving time. Well worth the monthly fee.”

– Heather Shirm, Palm Beach County

 

“Public agencies need an easy-to-use, credible method of retaining social media posts. [CivicPlus’ Social Media Archiving software] has automated this otherwise burdensome task.”

– Ken J. Mascara, Sheriff, St. Lucie County

Social Media Record Retention Legal News in Florida

Read about Florida cases and precedents involving social media and public record retention.

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Escambia County, FL, assessed $190,000 in legal fees after failing to produce records from the Commissioner’s Facebook accounts.

The Escambia County Commissioner was sued in federal court for failing to respond to two records requests for social media information from his Facebook accounts. The County settled and paid $7,700 to assist the commissioner in compiling Facebook messages and $190,000 in legal fees.

SOCIAL MEDIA ARCHIVING OVERVIEW

How Social Media Archiving Works

Download our solution overview to see how social media archiving helps you achieve public records compliance. Automatically retain every post, photo, comment, and more from your social pages for record retention.

eBook Comprehensive Social Media Archiving Compliance