[HISTORY: Adopted by the 1993 Annual Town Meeting of the Town of Westwood by Art. 21 (Art. 19 of the General Bylaws); amended in its entirety by the Annual Town Meeting 5-5-2008 by Art. 24. Subsequent amendments noted where applicable.]
The Information Technology (IT) Department shall have the sole responsibility to provide information technology services and systems to all Town offices and departments. All information services and systems shall be selected, purchased and operated under the guidance of the Communications & Technology Advisory Board (CTAB).
There shall be a department of the Town government, the Information Technology Department, which shall be part of the general government function. There shall be a Communications & Technology Advisory Board (CTAB), as described in § 47-3 below. The Department's operations shall be under the management and control of the Board of Selectmen. The Advisory Board shall serve in an advisory capacity for long-range planning, capital acquisitions and system selection and shall assist in the development of information technology policies and standards. The CTAB shall also provide guidance for matters relating to cable licensing to the Town's issuing authority, Board of Selectmen.
A. 
There shall be a Communications & Technology Advisory Board consisting of nine members appointed by the Board of Selectmen and constituted as follows: the Town Administrator, the Director of Information Technology, and seven members at large who shall not be full-time employees of the Town. At least four of the at-large members shall possess technical knowledge and experience in the field of information technology or telecommunications. The Town Administrator and the Director of Information Technology shall serve in an ex officio capacity and thus would not be voting members.
B. 
The at-large members of the Advisory Board shall serve three-year terms on a staggered basis so that at least one member will be appointed each year. In the event of a vacancy other than the normal expiration of the term of a member of the Advisory Board, the Selectmen shall, within 90 days after the vacancy occurs, appoint a successor to serve for the balance of the unexpired term.
C. 
Meetings of the Advisory Board should be held on a regular basis, not fewer than four times each calendar year. The Town Administrator, the Chairperson or a majority of the Advisory Board may call a meeting at any and all reasonable times. Four voting members of the Advisory Board shall constitute a quorum at all meetings.
D. 
The Advisory Board shall, within 30 days after the annual appointment, elect from its membership a Chairperson who shall not be an employee of the Town.
A. 
The Town Administrator, with the approval of the Board of Selectmen, shall appoint a Director of Information Technology who shall manage the daily operations of the Information Technology Department. It shall be the responsibility of the Information Technology Department, through the Town Administrator and the Director of Information Technology, to provide information technology services for all Town offices and departments to the extent possible and practical. The Information Technology Department, with the guidance of the Advisory Board, shall be responsible for overseeing and coordinating all information technology activities, including, but not limited to, the selection, acquisition, implementation, operation and maintenance of the Town's information technology, including hardware, software, and applications. The Department shall attempt to accommodate all requests from all departments whenever economically feasible and within the limits of the equipment capability of the Town's resources. All departments shall therefore cooperate to the fullest extent with the Information Technology Department personnel, including the Town Administrator and the Director of Information Technology; provided, however, the Department's duties as provided by any federal, state, or local law, bylaw, rule, or regulation shall prevail. Materials or equipment used in the School Department for classroom instruction shall be excluded from the above provision.
[Amended 5-3-2010 ATM by Art. 15]
B. 
The Town Administrator, with the assistance of the Director of Information Technology and the Advisory Board consistent with MGL c. 41, § 23D, and all fiscal and budgetary requirements, shall continue to bring together under the jurisdiction of the Town's budgetary systems all information technology systems and services for all Town offices and departments into one or more centralized unit(s) of operation.
C. 
Each office or department of the Town utilizing any service provided by the Information Technology Department covered by this bylaw shall have control over and be responsible for the data under its jurisdiction as it finds necessary to control its own affairs.
D. 
Access to information, issuance of reports, forms controls, operations, commitments, costs of services, training and users approvals as they relate to the Information Technology Department shall be considered appropriate subjects to be covered by rules and regulations to be developed by the Information Technology Department with the assistance of the Advisory Board.
A. 
Although municipal records are generally of a public nature, it is recognized that certain information to be processed by systems under the jurisdiction of the Information Technology Department is of a classified or confidential nature. The head of any department, board, or commission or other official tribunal having control of such classified or confidential information shall notify the Town Administrator in writing of the classified or confidential nature of the information, who shall thereafter take the necessary steps to protect such classified or confidential information from unauthorized access.
B. 
It shall be unlawful for any person to disclose or make known in any manner the contents or nature of any data while in the custody of the Department for processing or any information originated by the Department without the express consent of the head of the department, board, commission or other official tribunal supplying the information or tamper with, modify or destroy any data while in the custody of the Department except in accordance with approved routines for processing the data. Whoever violates any provision of this section shall be subject to appropriate disciplinary action.
It will be the responsibility of the IT Department and CTAB to look forward and accept new systems, technologies and infrastructure issues as they present themselves. This will continue with CTAB and be expanded as new technologies develop.