Town planner warns that committee emails are public records

As part of the primer, Maureen O'Mara reminded attendees that municipal communications are public records and cautioned that emails sent to committees may be publicly accessible. "Anytime you email a committee member, before you hit send, imagine you're sending it to your grandmother," she said, adding that everything written could be available for public review.

Presenters emphasized that committee email addresses typically route to staff or the committee roster (for example, the planning board email goes to the staff member who heads the group and to committee members). They advised correspondents to be mindful of tone and content because messages can be part of the public record.