The Difference Between Functional Gov and eCode360
Documents are a necessity for any local government. Laws like the Sunshine Act require Pennsylvania Municipalities to post agenda’s to their website at least 24 hours prior to their published meeting date. But what about codes and ordinances? Are Pennsylvania municipalities required to post ordinances online? Must they be codified? How can a municipality easily post documents to their website?
FunctionalGov
Let’s start with the easy documents. FunctionalGov is a plugin developed by CourseVector for our municipalities to post non-codified documents to their website. When we build a website for our municipal clients, we install and use this plugin to help organize documents. The types of documents that work well with FunctionalGov are documents that are:
- Repeated month to month, quarter to quarter, or even year to year.
- Officially published by the municipality.
- Organized by type on the website.
Here are some specific document types that work well with FunctionalGov:
- Meeting minutes
- Meeting agendas
- Ordinances & regulations (not codified or up for review, see below)
- Newsletters
- Forms
- Stormwater documents
- CCR reports
eCode360
eCode360 is a widely recognized platform provided by General Code. It is a comprehensive codification solution designed for municipalities, helping them organize, publish, and maintain their municipal codes, including ordinances and regulations. General Code, the company behind eCode360, has a long-standing reputation in the field of codification services and legal publishing for local governments. eCode360 offers features such as online hosting of municipal codes, search capabilities, mobile-friendly access, and continuous updates to keep the code current.
If a municipality chooses to use eCode360, they will work directly with General Code and provide us with their unique eCode360 link for their municipal website.
Does my municipality need to codify?
At least in the state of Pennsylvania, a Law is a state level ruling; an Ordinance is a local government ruling. Only the municipality’s solicitor can write an ordinance, otherwise the municipality would be practicing law without a degree/authority/etc. Once the solicitor has written an ordinance, a municipality can post whatever they want on their website. However, that doesn’t necessarily mean the ordinance is legal.
To ensure the legality of an ordinance, it can be codified. In brief, the municipality brings in a team of lawyers/paralegals to review ordinances against any other state/federal laws to make sure nothing is unconstitutional, and whatever makes it out of that QA session is what is codified.
Thankfully, this doesn’t need to be done frequently (because it’s expensive). It can be done, say every 5 years or so, when there is a batch of ordinances ready to be reviewed. Because of the expense involved, there is no law requiring codification. But it’s strongly recommended. A codified ordinance helps with open record requests and helps when someone tries to enforce an old law that was repealed or unconstitutional, etc.
Because this process is legal and confusing, companies like General Code can help municipalities tackle the task of keeping their ordinances up-to-date, legal, and enforceable. There are a few other companies that offer similar services, like American Legal Publishing. The field has narrowed in recent years of companies offering codification services. We recommend asking your solicitor for advice about the codification of your municipality’s ordinances.
Please note: CourseVector does not employ a legal team. Please verify the rules for your municipality with your solicitor to ensure that you are following all of the rules and regulations set forth by your state.