Limits proposed for mass emails before DeKalb elections

Elected officials often use their government email accounts to send updates to residents, but the DeKalb County Board of Ethics is worried that some of those communications look a lot like political campaigning.

The board is considering significantly curtailing mass communications from elected officials who may be sending out more emails as voting day nears to take advantage of their constituent mailing list.

The Board of Ethics plans to vote next month on whether to issue an advisory opinion that would limit the number and content of emails that officials can send during election season.

“It’s not acceptable for you to be sending out mass mailings on your county email immediately prior to an election because essentially what you’re doing is campaigning,” said DeKalb Ethics Officer Stacey Kalberman at a Thursday board meeting.

The issue arose after a resident, Sandra Kaye Bowen, filed an ethics complaint against DeKalb Commissioner Sharon Barnes Sutton over her frequent emails, including one on the day of the May 24 primary election. The DeKalb Board of Ethics hasn't taken action on the ethics complaint while a lawsuit from Sutton contesting the board's authority is pending.

Sutton said she and other DeKalb commissioners routinely send mass emails for the purpose of public information, not for campaigning.

"Obviously, I do updates. I've always done that. I didn't start doing that during the campaign," said Sutton, who lost a runoff election last month. "It's just another false accusation."

Sutton’s office sent 25 mass emails from March to May, the month of the primary election, according to a count of messages received by The Atlanta Journal-Constitution. Those emails included policy goals for the county, announcements of community meetings and a message wishing residents a happy Mother’s Day.

Commissioner Kathie Gannon, who also faced a primary contest, sent 16 mass emails during the same period.

DeKalb’s proposed ethics guidelines wouldn’t be as strict as limitations on elected federal officials, who are forbidden from using government resources for mass mailings, emails or social media postings within 90 days of a federal election.

“This is local-level politics, and people do need information about what’s going on in their county,” Kalberman said.

Under the ethics proposal: