In some instances, the use of a cell phone is essential to the ability of an employee to meet the demands of their job within the city. In those instances, the city may provide reimbursement to the employee for a portion of the cost of the use of their personal mobile phone. Decisions regarding which employees are eligible for reimbursement are made based on the employee's job functions made by the Mayor and approved through the commission budget. Employees who have been approved for a reimbursement from the city are subject to the following requirements:
(A) Currently, the reimbursement will be the employee's portion of the bill payable to the employee, not to exceed the actual amount paid by the employee for their cell phone service.
(B) The reimbursement is made pursuant to an accountable plan for reimbursement of business expenses. Therefore, it will not be considered income and will not be subject to taxation. To qualify under the accountable plan, the employee is required to provide documentation to the city as outlined in division (C), below.
(C) Reimbursements will be made monthly. The eligible employee must provide a copy of the first page of their cell phone bill to the city reflecting the total amount paid in order to receive reimbursement.
(D) Employees who receive reimbursement are expected to be available by phone, within a reasonable amount of time, whether during working hours or outside of working hours. Nonexempt employees will be paid for any time worked outside of the normal working hours when that time is not considered de minimus.
(E) Employees receiving reimbursement are required to provide their cell phone number to their supervisor and the City Clerk and maintain active service for the life of the reimbursement. Failure to do so may subject the employee to disciplinary action.
(F) The employee is responsible for the purchase of their own cell phone and all cell phone service contracts are to be between the employee and the service provider.
(G) All devices must be protected by a password. The user agrees to never disclose their password to anyone. The password should be a minimum of four characters. The device must also automatically lock after a period of inactivity.
(H) Lost or stolen phones or other communication devices should be reported to the City Clerk immediately.
(I) Since mobile telephones may contain locally stored data, they may be subject to the Open Records Laws, and/or discovery in the event of litigation, and as such there is no expectation of privacy. Each user is responsible and accountable for the content and use of these tools. The employee must comply with Open Records Laws, including archiving of data. For more information on records retention requirements contact the City Clerk.
(J) The Mayor and the employee's supervisor are responsible for an annual review of the need for a cell phone reimbursement, to determine if reimbursements should be discontinued.
(Ord. 5-11-2023-A, passed 6-8-2023)