A bill that would alter a city’s ability to provide Internet service has created some waves in local municipalities. SLAUGH said the city’s costs could be substantial if it were to install its own fiber optic lines, and visa-versa if a private organization wanted to expand into the city — they would need to either bury lines or lease telephone pole space from the city.
Since its introduction into the state legislature on Jan. 27, Senate Bill 307 sits in limbo as lawmakers are taking more time to investigate its effects.
The bill, introduced by the Senate Standing Committee on Commerce chaired by Sen. Julia Lynn (R-Kan), would ban any sort of partnership between private broadband providers and municipalities. Various cities, including Chanute, provide broadband services as utilities to their customers.
The hearing on the bill was cancelled on Monday. Sen. Lynn issued this statement in a press release:
“This is how our process is designed to work. Based on concerns I heard last week, I visited with industry representatives and they have agreed to spend some time gathering input before we move forward with a public hearing. I have decided to cancel the meeting planned for this week, and we’ll revisit the topic when some of these initial concerns have been addressed.”
And concerns there are.
The nature of the bill is a “telecommunications investment safeguards act” but some affected parties in Allen County have questioned who the bill is trying to in fact safeguard.
“The way I read it, it was going to prevent anyone from getting into the market,” Iola Administrator Carl Slaugh said. “It is going to do the opposite of what it said.”
He said the City of Iola is in the early planning stages of offering broadband services to its citizens, through a partnership with a local communications service. The two would share resources, through a contract, possibly giving a reduced cost and more efficient services to their customers.
LaHarpe Communications is one company that could be considered for the partnership.
“People in the community could get a better bang for their buck,” owner Harry Lee said Wednesday afternoon of a possible partnership.
However, if a bill such as Senate Bill 304 passes, the current providers would remain the only entities with a presence in Iola and its surrounding cities.
“There’s one very large flaw in the bill,” Lee said, and quoted it. “…Except where communities are underserved.”
A private/municipal partnership would be allowed in an “underserved” area, which the bill defines as a community where nine out of 10 homes do not have access to broadband connections — extremely rare, if not non-existent in Kansas.
“(By their definition) No one in the state of Kansas is underserved,” Lee said. “They really don’t give a good definition. It seems it’s crafted to put up roadblocks.”
However, if they partnered, the costs could be reduced for both entities, resulting in lower costs for customers — something that would force large corporate providers to take a good look at their prices.
“In a sense we would be in competition with Cox (Communications) and AT&T,” Slaugh said.
Lee said a similar situation is evident in Chanute, where the city provides broadband services around the community to schools, hospitals and other industries. Their services would be threatened by the current bill in the legislature.
However, Lee said the partnership with a municipality could cut into profits ultimately, which may be why the bill looks to prevent it.
“If I can afford to build in a community, I would prefer that taxpayer dollars would not compete against me,” Lee said.
If Senate Bill 304 passes, local providers may not have to.
Broad-’banned’ – Senate bill would nix municipal involvement in high-speed service
