RF Terms and Conditions

Website and Community Rules, Discussion, Etiquette Guidelines, Privacy Policy, Meeting Policy, Antitrust Policy, and General Terms of Use

Last Updated September 2026

Thank you for being part of our community of APGA Research Foundation (RF) contributors. To ensure the best possible experience for all users, we have established some basic guidelines for participation. By joining the RF and using RF's website and its online community, you agree that you have read and will follow these rules and guidelines. You also agree to only post discussions, blogs, shared files, and content to RF's online forums that are relevant to solicit the advice of your community-owned gas industry peers, benefit from their experience, and participate in an ongoing conversation. Questions and login issues should be directed to RF staff via the Contact Us link on this site.

Users found in violation may be at risk of disciplinary actions, including but not limited to having their website credentials revoked or further legal action. 

Note: The RF Community sends email notifications of its posts to contributors, and those emails are considered public record in many states. You can choose which emails you would or would not like to receive from the RF Community at any time by updating your community digest & email settings on your community profile under the MY ACCOUNT tab. To update your general APGA and/or RF email preferences for newsletters, etc., please go here or click 'Update Email Preferences' link at the bottom of an APGA and/or RF email.

The Rules

  • All messages must add to the body of knowledge around research and development for the community-owned & publicly-owned natural gas industry and should aim to engage RF contributors in discussion and knowledge sharing. RF reserves the right to reject any message for any reason.
  • Please refrain from discussing topics such as utility rates and salaries on the RF Community as it could be seen as anti-competitive and a violation of RF's anti-trust warning & guidelines which can be viewed at www.apgarf.org/anti-trust-warning.
  • Job postings are not allowed in the RF's online forums, libraries, blogs, events, or other areas of the RF website.
  • All unprofessional, defamatory, abusive, profane, threatening, offensive, or illegal messaging & materials are strictly prohibited. The discussions and comments are meant to stimulate conversation around topics relevant to the community-owned & publicly-owned natural gas utility industry from a variety of perspectives, experiences, and backgrounds. Do not disparage, alienate, or attack others. Let others have their say, just as you may.
  • Refrain from solicitation, marketing, and sales activity on any discussion list, resource library entry, blog, direct message to individuals, or any other area of RF’s community and website. Community contributions should be unbiased and free of promotional messaging like marketing of one’s product/services, non-RF events or trainings, special offers and promotions, and company press releases. You may reply to RF contributors directly with product and service information only if such information was specifically requested in their post(s). While informational posts about products or services that address specific needs are acceptable when solicited by a community participant, unsolicited promotional posts are not allowed and will be removed.
  • Use caution when discussing other companies’ products and services as community contributions should be unbiased and free from conflict of interest. See RF's Anti-Trust Policy at www.apgarf.org/anti-trust-policy. Please refrain from making negative comments about the products, services, or offerings of a competitor or peer. The information posted on the lists and in the libraries is available for all RF contributors to see, and comments are subject to libel, slander, and antitrust laws.
  • RF would like to remind website users that the content on RF’s website is copyrighted. It is prohibited to use AI tools to search, summarize, analyze, and save content from RF’s community and websites (examples: posts, articles, webinar recordings, resources, and directories) for both personal use and redistribution and it is not allowed to let AI platforms learn or train on RF’s websites or copyrighted materials. It is also prohibited to upload RF materials and resources into AI platforms. See our Use of Third-Party AI Tools on RF’s Website section of our website for more. 
  • RF takes intellectual property rights seriously, and RF website users should not add any content that infringes on others’ intellectual property rights. Users should promptly notify RF (info@apga.org) if they believe content in the community infringes on any intellectual property rights so RF can promptly review any potential infringement. RF disclaims responsibility for content published on our sites by our users that infringes on others’ intellectual property rights. 
  • Our website and community platform include AI-powered features. It is prohibited to use AI features for harmful, discriminatory, harassing, or otherwise unethical purposes. It is also prohibited to use AI features or their outputs to infringe anyone else's rights, as well as presenting AI content as officially reviewed or approved by RF or as entirely your own original work. AI-generated content from features on RF’s website is not verified nor guaranteed to be accurate. It is prohibited to input content into RF’s AI features unless you have the right to use that work. Please view our Use of Third-Party AI Tools on RF’s Website section of this page. 
  • Blogs are used exclusively by RF staff to share RF news.
  • Due to our arrangement with the Energy Services Center (ESC), we do not allow contributors to post any ESC materials to the RF website or community to avoid non-ESC members accessing these materials. 
  • Please note carefully all items listed in the disclaimer and legal rules below, particularly regarding the copyright ownership of information posted.

Discussion Group Etiquette

  • Discussion posts are meant to be a vehicle for engagement with your peers. Your post should include a question or an invitation for other RF contributors to reply with feedback. 
  • Only create a message or add documents to the entire forum when it contains information that most RF contributors  can benefit from. Post your message or documents to the most appropriate lists or libraries. Do not spam several lists or libraries with the same message. 
  • State concisely and clearly the topic of your comments in the subject line. This allows RF contributors to respond more appropriately to your posting and makes it easier for contributors to search the archives by subject.  
  • Include only the relevant portions of the original message in your reply. Delete any header information and put your response before the original posting.
  • Use the "Reply to Sender" link to the left of every message to send a direct message if you only want to send a quick note like "me, too" to a specific individual instead of the whole group.
  • Do not send administrative messages, such as remove me from the community notifications as a discussion post. If you would like to request any changes to your account, please notify RF by emailing info@apga.org to assist you. You can also go to your profile’s email settings at https://www.apgarf.org/resources/members/profile/myaccount/my-settings?section=subscriptions to update your RF Community digest email preferences.
  • The RF Community is a forum for community-owned and natural gas utility professionals to discuss topics around research and development relevant to the industry, and RF email notifications may be considered public record in various states. Do not post anything that you would not want your professional network (and the wider world) to see or that you would not want anyone to know came from you.

Use of AI-Powered Features on RF's Website

Our website and community platform include AI-powered features. When using them, please keep these terms in mind, as they apply in addition to our general community and website terms of use: 

  • AI-generated content is not verified or guaranteed to be accurate. Content produced by any AI features on RF’s website(s) is created through automated processes and has not been independently checked, fact-checked, or endorsed. Please review any AI-generated content before relying on it or sharing it. No inputs/outputs should be used for legal and/or compliance advice.

  • Do not use AI features or their outputs to infringe anyone else's rights, nor present AI content as officially reviewed or as entirely your own original work. AI-generated content should not infringe on anyone else’s intellectual property, privacy, or other third-party rights. Any content or output generated by AI features on RF’s website is not and should not be portrayed as being approved or vetted by RF or any of our technology partners, nor should it be presented as an original or wholly human-written work.  

  • Only input content you have the right to use. The RF takes intellectual property rights seriously, and RF website users should not input any sensitive and/or confidential information or content that infringes others’ intellectual property rights. When you provide text, images, or other material to an AI feature, make sure it is your own work, or you have permission to use it. RF disclaims responsibility for content inputted on our sites by our users that infringes on others’ intellectual property or privacy rights. Due to our arrangement with the Energy Services Center (ESC), it is prohibited to input any ESC materials to avoid non-ESC members accessing these materials. 

  • Do not use content or outputs from our website or community to train or improve any AI tool. Content generated on RF’s website shouldn't be taken out and used to develop, train, or improve other AI or machine learning models outside our community. See our Use of Third-Party AI Tools on RF’s Website section of our Terms and Conditions webpage for more information. 

  • Do not use AI features for harmful, discriminatory, harassing, or otherwise unethical purposes. 

Use of Third-Party AI Tools on RF’s Website

As artificial intelligence (AI) tools become more common place in today’s workforce, the RF would like to remind website users that the content on the RF’s website is copyrighted. While AI tools may have benefits, it is important to acknowledge their potential consequences (especially when using an AI tool without a paid subscription) such as: 

  • storage, replication, or dissemination of RF’s copyrighted information without RF’s consent,  

  • content creation that may contain hallucinations (inaccuracies), and  

  • unauthorized storage, replication, or dissemination of personally identifying information of our contributors.  

As such, the following are prohibited: 

  • using AI tools to search, summarize, analyze, and save content from RF’s website (examples: posts, articles, webinar recordings, resources, and directories) for either personal use or redistribution  

  • letting AI platforms learn or train on RF’s website or copyrighted materials.  

  • uploading RF materials and resources into AI platforms.  

Also, it is prohibited to use artificial intelligence (AI) “meeting bots” that may record, transcribe, and/or summarize RF virtual meetings for users. Please see our event & meetings policy for more information. 

The Legal Stuff

This site is provided as a service for the contributors of the American Public Gas Association Research Foundation (RF) and municipal gas system industry professionals.   RF is not responsible for the opinions and information posted on this site by others. We disclaim all warranties concerning information posted on this site, whether posted by the RF, its contributors, or any third party; this disclaimer includes all implied warranties of merchantability and fitness. In no event shall the RF be liable for any damages whatsoever, including special, indirect, or consequential damages, resulting from loss of use, data, or profits, arising out of or in connection with the use or performance of any information posted on this site.

Do not post any defamatory, abusive, profane, threatening, offensive, anti-competitive, or otherwise illegal materials. Do not post any information or other material protected by copyright without the permission of the copyright owner. By posting material, the posting party warrants and represents that he or she owns the copyright with respect to such material or has received permission from the copyright owner. Also, the posting party grants RF and users of this site the nonexclusive right and license to display, copy, publish, distribute, transmit, print, and use such information or other material.

Messages should not be posted if they encourage or facilitate users to arrive at any agreement that either expressly or impliedly leads to price fixing, a boycott of another's business or other conduct intended to illegally restrict free trade. Messages that encourage or facilitate an agreement about the following subjects are inappropriate: prices, discounts, or terms or conditions of sale; salaries; profits, profit margins, or cost data; market shares, sales territories, or markets; allocation of customers or territories; or selection, rejection, or termination of customers or suppliers.

RF does not actively monitor the site for inappropriate postings and does not undertake editorial control of postings. However, in the event that any inappropriate posting is brought to the attention of RF, we will take appropriate action.

RF reserves the right to terminate access to any user who does not abide by these guidelines or remove any post or materials that are in violation of these rules or applicable laws without prior notice to the posting party. Further, RF reserves the right to modify these Community Rules & Etiquette and Privacy Guidelines at any time and shall notify Community participants of such modifications.

Due to our arrangement with the Energy Services Center (ESC), we do not allow contributors to post any ESC materials to the RF community to avoid non-ESC members accessing these materials. 

Privacy Policy

Your privacy is important to the RF. You have the right to understand how RF handles your personal identifiable information (PII) prior to providing it to RF through the RF Web site at www.apgarf.org and all subdomains. Please read our privacy policy at www.apgarf.org/rfprivacy. 

To better protect your privacy, our privacy policy explains our online information practices and the choices you can make about the way your information is collected and used. To make this notice easy to find, we make it available in the footer of the RF website.

By using this site, you signify your assent to our Privacy Policy. If you do not agree to the RF Privacy Policy, please do not use the RF Web site, www.apgarf.org. RF reserves the right, at our complete discretion, to change, modify, add, or remove portions of this policy at any time. Please check back periodically for any changes we may make to the policy. Your continued use of the RF Web site, www.apgarf.org, and all following the posting of changes to these terms will mean you accept those changes.

External Sites

We are not responsible for the content of external internet sites. You are advised to read the privacy policy of external sites before disclosing any personal information.

Cookies

A "cookie" is a small data text file that is placed in your browser and allows us to recognize you each time you visit this site (personalization, etc.). Cookies themselves do not contain any personal information, and we do not use cookies to collect personal information. Read more about RF's usage of cookies in our privacy policy at www.apgarf.org/rfprivacy. 

Event & Refund Policy

RF Events include but are not limited to Board meetings, conferences, workshops, webinars, and committee, subcommittee, and task group meetings.  The below policies apply to all Participants in RF Events, which includes but is not limited to registrants, speakers, exhibitors, staff, guests, hospitality/venue staff, and vendors.  Participation constitutes agreement to comply with these policies. Please read our privacy policy at www.apgarf.org/meeting-refund-policy. 

Antitrust Policy

Antitrust laws are among the most important laws affecting business.  Their purpose is to preserve fair and honest competition by, among other things, prohibiting any kind of agreement or understanding between or among competitors, whether formal or informal, oral or written, express or implied, regarding prices, terms of sale, limits of territories, or allocation of markets, no matter the reason.  Violation of antitrust laws can carry serious criminal and civil penalties.  Please read our antitrust policy at www.apgarf.org/anti-trust-policy. 

Remember The Risks Whenever You Use The Internet

While we do our best to protect your personal information, we cannot guarantee the security of any information that you transmit to us and you are solely responsible for maintaining the secrecy of any passwords or other account information. In addition, other Internet sites or services that may be accessible through our site have separate data and privacy practices independent of us, and therefore we disclaim any responsibility or liability for their policies or actions. Please contact those vendors and others directly if you have any questions about their privacy policies.  For any other information, please contact us using the Contact Us page.