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18 years after its passage at the behest of large telecommunications companies, the Colorado law that required communities to hold an election before building broadband networks has been stricken from the books. This week Governor Jared Polis signed a bill eliminating the previous requirement that local governments hold an election to opt-out of SB-152, passed in 2005, before offering broadband services. The previous law was not an outright barrier to municipal broadband, but did place an extra burden on communities that large providers used to try to block successful referendums. One of the most egregious examples of pushback came in Fort Collins in 2017, when an industry-funded group called "Priorities First Fort Collins" spent $451,000 against the referendum - only to see voters approve the measure 57% to 43%. Supporters of the referendum spent just $10,000 to promote a YES vote. Overall, 122 Colorado communities have voted to authorize municipal broadband over the years, with only one town voting it down. For more details on the Colorado law, check out this excellent article at ArsTechnica.
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Block Island, a small island off the coast of Rhode Island, is home to that state's first municipal fiber-to-the-home network. And after two years of preparation and construction, the first customers are about to be hooked up to service. The Block Island network is a public-private partnership between the Town of New Shoreham, owner of the network known as Broadband BI, and Crocker Communications, which will provide direct customer support and billing. Another company, Sertex Broadband Solutions, was responsible for network construction and ongoing network operations. The network has 53 miles of fiber on its distribution system; 62 miles of underground service drops; and 1,800 property connections. Last month, Broadband BI opened up the first service area for installation and connection. According to their website, they have now opened up subscriptions in two additional service areas.  Congratulations to the residents of Block Island for having access to service from your community-owned network!
Nationwide, enrollment in the Affordable Connectivity Program (ACP) has reached 33.7% of eligible households. But enrollment across the nation varies greatly depending on location. The Institute for Local Self-Reliance (ILSR), a CBAN advocate member, has created an excellent tool for tracking ACP adoption at the website acpdashboard.com. Among the states, adoption ranges from a high of 46.3% in Louisiana to a low of just 11.6% in North Dakota. CBAN currently has members in 20 states, and ACP adoption still has a long way to go in those states.
ILSR is estimating that about $8.7 Billion remains in the ACP and that at current adoption rates the fund will be depleted sometime next spring or summer. There is expected to be significant pressure on Congress to find additional funding for the ACP, but so far no legislation has been advanced.
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Broadband Bytes NewsPresented by the Community Broadband Action Network and curated by Curtis Dean. Archives
April 2025
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