Remember Waverly, Iowa? We introduced you to the town of 10,000 back in 2013 when they revived the community choice to develop a telecommunications utility. Recently in February, the Waverly Light and Power Board of Trustees approved a long awaited gigabit project reported American Public Power. According to a WLP press release, the $12 million project … Read More
The FCC has found that it has the authority to remove aspects of Tennessee and North Carolina law that limit local authority to build or expand Internet networks. In short, states seem to retain the authority to restrict municipalities from offering service at all. However, if states allow local governments to offer services, then the FCC … Read More
As the time approached for FCC Commissioners to choose to allow Wilson and Chattanooga to serve surrounding communities, leaders from municipalities with publicly owned networks shared their experiences. Jill Boudreau, Mayor of Mount Vernon, Washington, published her community’s experience with their muni in GoSkagit.com. As in the recent testimonial from Opelika Mayor Gary Fuller, Mayor Boudreau described how Mount … Read More
Whether You’re Red or Blue, You Should Love the FCC’s Internet Plan: This Tea Party guy gets it. Why don’t DC Republicans? by Susan Crawford, BackChannel He said (paraphrasing), “I want my freedom and I can’t stand the idea of government messing with our lives, and that’s why I like the Tea Party. But I also … Read More
Ready … set … get local net! Chris recently spoke to OEMG Occupy Radio about the hundreds of community broadband networks providing some of the best Internet service in the country. He encouraged citizens to look at municipal ownership, cooperative ownership, or non-profit models. Listen to the conversation below. Chris’s segment begins at 11:55. Enjoy! Occupyeugenemedia.org describes itself … Read More
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: March 13, 2015 CONTACT: Rebecca Toews, rebecca@ILSR.org, (612)808-0689 Key Passages and Arguments From The FCC Decision to Remove Barriers to Municipal Networks in TN and NC The Federal Communications Commission has released the order that allows Chattanooga and Wilson, as well as many other cities in North Carolina and Tennessee, to build, … Read More
The Yolo County Board of Supervisors in California voted unanimously recently to accept consultants’ recommendations to take steps improve broadband in the county. Some of those recommendations included investing in infrastructure to improve both urban and rural areas in the northern county. The Davis Enterprise reported on the meeting from February 24th: With its diverse mix … Read More
Monica Webb, long-time spokesperson and current chairman for Massachusetts’ WiredWest, recently spoke with John Hockenberry on The Take Away. Monica briefly described why the coalition of local communities chose to take control of their own connectivity with a regional municipal effort. Fittingly enough, Monica describes how she had to drive 20 minutes in order to access … Read More
Longmont’s NextLight is well known in the municipal networks space; now other media markets are starting to notice the most recent network in the Centennial State. CCTV America profiled the network recently, highlighting its importance to local businesses. CCTV spoke with a local tech business owner who had recently connected to the municipal network: Jon Rice … Read More
