Using a personal cellular device while on the dais is no longer allowed at meetings of the Lathrop City Council.

The council voted 4-1 on Monday – with Councilwoman Minnie Diallo dissenting –to add a new section to the council handbook that governs the use of electronic devices that can be used to communicate with people not seated on the dais.

There is an exception for city-issued devices that are being used to access publicly available information.

The change came after then-Vice Mayor Jennifer Torres-O’Callaghan made a recommendation to staff at the November meeting to draft language that would help the city follow the guidelines of good governance and transparency as outlined by the League of California Cities and other municipal government advocacy organizations.

“The City Council's use of electronic communication devices, such as cell phones and smart watches, during a City Council meeting may lead to the public's perception that a Councilmember is not paying attention to the subject matter at hand or that a Councilmember is receiving information relative to the subject matter at hand that other Councilmembers and members of the public are not receiving, either one of which is inimical to good government and transparency,” the proposed language submitted to the council for consideration that was ultimately approved said. “Therefore, a Councilmember's use of electronic communication devices (including cell phones and smart watches), other than for the purpose of accessing agenda materials that are on a Councilmember's city issued iPad/ tablet device or lap top computer, is prohibited at the dais during City Council meetings and Closed Sessions.

“In the event of an urgent family/personal matter, a private landline will be dedicated for City Council family members and close relatives to reach the City Clerk's office for immediate assistance, and or to reach a member of Council while the meeting is in session.”

But the move to restrict communication wasn’t met with fanfare by everybody on the council.

Councilwoman Minnie Diallo said when the topic was introduced that she wasn’t in favor of it in any way because she uses her phone to communicate with her daughter while she is at council meetings and doesn’t have any other way to ensure that she’s okay. Even when the idea of a dedicated landline that could be used by those on the council in the event of an emergency – a line that could even be monitored by a staff member during a meeting – Diallo said that since her daughter doesn’t have a phone and uses a device to communicate with her, she wouldn’t be in favor of adopting such stringent measures.

The discussion prompted a deep discussion on Lathrop-focused social media pages that chided the council for making life harder for parents who also happen to be on the council.

The move towards promoting transparency in the digital age started gaining traction in 2016 when a publication about the Ralph M. Brown Act – California’s open meetings and government transparency law – pointed out that “new communication technologies present new Brown Act challenges.”

As a result of the possible implications that communicating during a meeting outside of the public eye, several state legislatures have banned the practice and cities such as Anaheim, Berkeley, Encinitas, Milpitas, Palm Desert, San Jose, and Stockton have adopted similar regulations.

To contact reporter Jason Campbell email jcampbell@mantecabulletin.com or call 209.249.3544.