Political Activity on Campus and Use of University Resources

As local and national political campaign activity increases, the Office of Government and Community Relations would like to remind all employees of applicable policies and rules governing the use of university facilities, resources, and time for partisan political purposes.

Permissible Activities
Employees may:

• Participate in the political campaign process on their own time and in their personal capacity, without reference to their Stony Brook University affiliation. There must be a clear separation between campaign-related activities and university employment.

• Make political contributions and engage in political activity during non-working hours.

Prohibited Activities
Employees may not:

• Use their university positions to gain political favor. Encouraging or discouraging others to engage in political campaigns—including soliciting political contributions or participation in campaign activities—is prohibited.

• Use university or state resources for partisan political purposes. This includes, but is not limited to, university letterhead, computers, offices, phones, email accounts, and listservs.

Because Stony Brook University email addresses are public, employees may receive unsolicited political messages. Use of a university email address for non-university-related activity increases the likelihood of receiving such communications. Employees are therefore reminded to use their work email solely for university-related business, consistent with the University’s Responsible Use of Information Technology Resources policy and the Division of Information Technology’s Use of Email policy.

Campus-Related Political Activities
The University recognizes the educational value of exposing students to political debate and information, including partisan political speech, and of making campus facilities available—consistent with University policies—to a wide range of speakers and expressive activities.

Additional guidance, including information on hosting political candidates on campus and other matters related to political activity and freedom of expression, is available through the University’s Freedom of Speech and Expression resources.

Additional Resources

• New York State Commission on Ethics and Lobbying in Government

• Fundraising and Solicitation on Campus Policy

Employees with questions regarding their personal engagement in political activity should contact the appropriate Human Resources Office. Questions related to hosting candidates on campus, civic engagement initiatives, or general political activities on campus should be directed to Carl Mills, Associate Vice President for Government Relations, at carl.mills@stonybrook.edu.

Office of Government and Community Relations
Stony Brook University