[grc] Ban on municipal broadband lifted

Sun Nov 15 20:20:30 PST 2015

Sabrina - I see that last year Seattle was to vote on providing broadband to homeless camps. Did that happen? Here's the link to an article 

http://news.yahoo.com/seattle-councillors-vote-funding-internet-access-homeless-camps-140125272.html

Heather Gray
Atlanta 

Sent from my iPhone

> On Nov 15, 2015, at 6:35 PM, Sabrina Roach <sabrinadroach at gmail.com> wrote:
> 
> Tom,
> 
> I'm so excited to see you post this piece about the big municipal broadband
> win in Colorado.
> 
> I see municipal broadband and community media as closely linked, so I
> initiated a campaign called  Upgrade Seattle.
> 
> We worked with our city council to amend our mayor's proposed budget to
> include a 5 M municipal broadband pilot project. They vote tomorrow! Keep
> your fingers crossed.
> 
> Best,
> Sabrina
> 
> PS: Posting about it to social media helps.
> 
> Coverage:
> 
> Puget Sound Business Journal
> http://www.bizjournals.com/seattle/blog/techflash/2015/11/seattle-council-to-vote-on-municipal-broadband.html
> 
> The Stranger
> http://www.thestranger.com/blogs/slog/2015/11/09/23128952/small-businesses-face-internet-dead-zone-in-sodo-after-sprint-shutters-wireless-network
> 
> Geekwire
> http://www.geekwire.com/2015/seattle-officials-debate-5m-proposal-to-test-municipal-broadband-in-one-part-of-town/
> 
> 
> 
> 
>> On Sun, Nov 15, 2015 at 1:32 PM, Tom Voorhees <juice at whidbey.com> wrote:
>> 
>> FYI
>> There is some hope for the future !
>> Tom.
>> 
>> 
>> http://www.fiercetelecom.com/story/seven-colorado-cities-counties-lift-10-year-ban-municipal-broadband-investm/2015-11-04?utm_medium=nl&utm_source=internal
>> [1]
>> TWENTY SIX COLORADO CITIES, 17 COUNTIES LIFT 10-YEAR BAN ON MUNICIPAL
>> BROADBAND INVESTMENT
>> 
>> November 4, 2015 | By Sean Buckley [2]
>> 
>> The municipal broadband movement got a boost in Colorado as residents in 26
>> cities and towns and 17 counties voted to overturn a law that limited local
>> communities from building a broadband business even in areas where
>> incumbent telcos and cable operators have refused to upgrade facilities.
>> 
>> While there are over two dozen states that have laws on the books limiting
>> local government from offering broadband services -- a number of which have
>> been driven by the local cable operators and telcos like Comcast (NASDAQ:
>> CMCSA [3]) and AT&T (NYSE: T [4]) -- Colorado's law stands out from other
>> states.
>> 
>> Under the 2005 state law, a municipality can build their own broadband
>> network if "an election shall be called" and a majority of voters approve
>> it.
>> 
>> The majority of voters supported local measures with over 70 percent of
>> ballots cast. The ballot measure passed overwhelmingly in all 43 cities and
>> counties where voters considered it.
>> 
>> Among some of the areas were Durango where over 90 percent of voters chose
>> to opt out of restrictive SB 152. Likewise, Telluride voters affirmed their
>> commitment to local authority when over 93 percent of votes supported
>> measure 2B.
>> 
>> A call to repeal restrictions on municipal broadband is not relegated just
>> to Colorado. Similar initiatives have been called for in North Carolina and
>> Tennessee, for example
>> 
>> In February, the FCC moved to preempt [5] elements of state laws in North
>> Carolina and Tennessee that were designed to restrict municipal providers
>> in these communities from providing broadband service outside of their
>> current serving areas. This move could drive other states to act and could
>> result in court challenges.
>> 
>> Meanwhile, a group of mayors from New Haven, West Hartford and Stamford,
>> Conn., have come together in hopes of creating a 1 Gbps-capable open access
>> fiber-to-the-premises network for the state.
>> 
>> For more:
>> - _The Denver Post _has this article [6]
>> - here's a complete list [7] of communities
>> 
>> Related articles:
>> Colorado communities band together to eliminate municipal broadband
>> restrictions [8]
>> Seven Colorado cities get green light to build municipal broadband networks
>> [9]
>> Baltimore mulls its own municipal broadband plan [10]
>> Connecticut mayors make call for 1 Gig broadband open access network [11]
>> Republicans rail against FCC Chairman Wheeler's municipal-broadband
>> proposals [12]
>> Fiber hunter: How to improve Internet access by digging up forgotten fiber
>> lines [13]
>> Longmont, Colo., employs Calix for its 1 Gbps FTTH network [14] _This
>> article was updated on Nov. 5 to reflect that it was 26 communities that
>> made the vote._
>> 
>> 
>> 
>> Links:
>> ------
>> [1]
>> http://www.fiercetelecom.com/story/seven-colorado-cities-counties-lift-10-year-ban-municipal-broadband-investm/2015-11-04?utm_medium=nl&amp;utm_source=internal
>> [2] http://www.fiercetelecom.com/author/sbuckley
>> [3] http://www.fiercecable.com/tags/comcast
>> [4] http://www.fiercewireless.com/tags/att-0
>> [5]
>> http://www.fiercetelecom.com/story/fcc-ruling-overturns-state-laws-preventing-municipal-broadband-expansion/2015-02-26
>> [6]
>> http://www.denverpost.com/news/ci_29053351/colorado-communities-trying-lift-limits-municipal-broadband
>> [7] http://muninetworks.org/content/voters-quiet-drums-polls-colorado
>> [8]
>> http://fiercetelecom.com/story/colorado-communities-band-together-eliminate-municipal-broadband-restrictio/2015-11-03
>> [9]
>> http://www.fiercetelecom.com/story/seven-colorado-cities-get-green-light-build-municipal-broadband-networks/2014-11-07
>> [10]
>> http://www.fiercetelecom.com/story/baltimore-mulls-its-own-municipal-broadband-plan/2014-09-22
>> [11]
>> http://www.fiercetelecom.com/story/connecticut-mayors-make-call-1-gig-broadband-open-access-network/2014-09-16
>> [12]
>> http://www.fiercetelecom.com/story/republicans-rail-against-fcc-chairman-wheelers-municipal-broadband-proposal/2014-08-22
>> [13]
>> http://www.fiercetelecom.com/special-reports/fiber-hunter-how-improve-internet-access-digging-forgotten-fiber-lines
>> [14]
>> http://www.fiercetelecom.com/story/longmont-colo-employs-calix-its-1-gbps-ftth-network/2014-06-23
>> 
>> _______________________________________________
>> grc mailing list
>> grc at maillist.peak.org
>> http://maillist.peak.org/mailman/listinfo/grc
> _______________________________________________
> grc mailing list
> grc at maillist.peak.org
> http://maillist.peak.org/mailman/listinfo/grc