Lab employees are free to engage in political advocacy as individuals, but should be aware of the prohibition on engaging in political activities at work or by using any Department of Energy or University of California assets, resources, or space to conduct and aid political activities. In the Lab’s pursuit of science solutions as part of a taxpayer-funded institution, it is the responsibility of all employees to ensure that the Lab remains neutral in political matters and that state and federal resources are not used for political advocacy or expression. Doing so is in violation of Lab policy and in some instances is against federal law.
Take a moment to get familiarized with the key elements of existing policies and a few examples of permitted and prohibited activities below. In general, the policies do not permit the use of Lab resources, staffing, funding, systems, or materials in activities that might reasonably be viewed as partisan or political in nature.
Lab employees may: | Lab employees should not: |
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Resources
- Acceptable Use of IT
- Social Media Policies and Guidelines
- Media Interactions and External Communications Policy
- Elements Comments Policy
- Policy Area – Public Information and External Relations
- Cost Allowability
Lab employees may contact GCR at jtnurse@lbl.gov for any additional questions.
For those who have a UC appointment, UC has developed guidelines that are intended to assist in drawing the difficult distinction between legitimate informational activities and unlawful campaign activities. Refer to the guidance here for more information. If there are any additional questions, please contact the Office of Government and Community Relations at gcr@berkeley.edu.