State Attorneys General Now Friends With Facebook

State attorneys general have not always gotten along with social networking sites. In years past there have been issues with MySpace, as well as other sites.

But Facebook and the attorneys general appear to be getting along just fine. In fact, the National Association of Attorneys General and the National Association of State Chief Information Officers have worked with Facebook to modify its stated terms and conditions for state agencies.

The attorneys general, especially, view Facebook as a way to communicate directly with consumers in their states on issues of concern. Until now, Facebook's terms and conditions precluded many states from using it.

Keeping the public apprised

"We look forward to continuing to work with Facebook and starting a new dialogue with the people of Colorado through the company's website," said Colorado Attorney General John Suthers. "Social media is a great way to keep the public apprised of the important work we and other public entities do on behalf of the people of Colorado."

Colorado led the multistate discussions with Facebook, Suthers said. The thirteen other states participating in the negotiations were Alaska, Arkansas, Connecticut, Delaware, Idaho, Massachusetts, Mississippi, North Dakota, Ohio, Oklahoma, Oregon, South Carolina and Utah.

"Facebook provides a tremendous venue for state agencies and their local counterparts to keep their constituents apprized of the great work they do," said Mississippi Attorney General Jim Hood. "We and our partner agencies look forward to using the site to stay in contact with the public."

Constitutional conflict

Facebook has modified portions of its terms of service agreement that all users must agree to in order to use the site. The Colorado Attorney General's Office began discussions with Facebook roughly a year ago after it discovered conflicts between the company's terms of service agreement and provisions of the Colorado Constitution.

The new terms mirror, in many ways, a similar agreement the social media company reached with the federal government more than a year ago, which allowed 33 federal government agencies to connect with their constituents through Facebook.

Facebook has specifically agreed to modify the provisions of its terms and conditions to:

Strike the indemnity clause except to the extent indemnity is allowed by a state's constitution or law;

• Strike language requiring that legal disputes be venued in California courts and adjudicated under California law;

• Require that a public agency include language directing consumers to its official Web site prominently on any Facebook page; and,

• Encourage amicable resolution between public entities and Facebook over any disputes.

The modifications will immediately apply to state and local government agencies already on Facebook.