Guidelines for Civility

By posting on City of Virginia Beach electronic communications tools, users acknowledge to have read and agreed to the following Terms of Use. Virginia Beach residents are encouraged to read and comment about issues affecting the city and its residents. We encourage discussion and varying viewpoints; however, the City of Virginia Beach page will not feature any of the following and reserves the right to delete posts, comments, pictures or video that includes such items.

• Solicitations or advertisements of any kind that are not officially sponsored by the City of Virginia Beach
• Nudity or pornography
• Profanity or vulgar language
• Personal attacks or threats against any person or group; libelous, harassing or abusive statements
• Posting someone else’s personal information such as home address or phone number without their written consent
• Establishments where the distribution or sale of alcoholic beverages is a primary business function
• Activities restricted to adults
• Tobacco and tobacco products
• Firearms or other weapons
• Hostility or violence toward any individual or group, including personal insults, libel, defamation of character
• Attacks on ethnic, racial, gender or religious groups
• Illegal or inappropriate use of firearms or drugs, or any illegal activity
• Sexual overtone or innuendo
• Posts by persons who are impersonating city officials or using false identities
• Information harmful to children or is of a nature to frighten children, either emotionally or physically
• Cruelty to animals
• Online casino gaming, gambling or betting
• Information affiliated with or promoting political campaigns
• Posts that do not include individual’s legal first and last name.
• Posts that purport to represent the views of an organization, business, or any type of group or committee, unless the poster has been authorized to speak on behalf of the organization, business, group, or committee.

In summary, users should feel free to post thoughts and opinions, whether positive, negative or indifferent, but must do it respectfully. If they use hateful, obscene or insulting language or launch personal attacks, we will delete the post. The City of Virginia Beach reserves the right to block users who repeatedly violate our terms of use.