Fast, affordable Internet access for all.
Top Stories
Latest Stories
The State of State Preemption: Stalled – But Moving In More Competitive Direction
Today, we unveil our updated list of the 16 states in the U.S. with preemption laws still in place that either prevent or restrict local municipalities from building and operating publicly-owned, locally-controlled networks. These states maintain these laws, despite the fact that wherever municipal broadband networks or other forms of community-owned networks operate, the service they deliver residents and businesses almost always offers faster connection speeds, more reliable service, and lower prices.
Communications in Costume
For many in the broadband and digital equity space, keeping up with “the maps” has been a long and arduous topic. Especially with the commencement of the BEAD program and state-level map challenges, we think it’s safe to say many feel frustrated or even horrified at what they find lurking within maps of Internet access. With Halloween upon us, we thought we'd take a short break from dwelling on such a tricky topic and instead offer you a treat.
Placerville, California Strikes Gold With New Grant to Build City-Owned Open Access Fiber Network
Placerville, California will soon be a place with a municipally-owned open-access fiber network as the city of 10,000 looks to provide its residents and businesses with local choice and more affordable broadband service. Thanks to a $20.1 million award from the California Public Utilities Commission (CPUC) Last Mile Federal Funding Account (FFA) Grant Program – a city that was once nicknamed “Hangtown” is now set to cut the noose of the ISP monopoly.
Montgomery County Maryland Recognized For Broadband Equity Efforts
Montgomery County Maryland has been awarded the “Best Municipal or Public Connectivity Program,” honored as a 2024 Broadband Nation Award winner for its ongoing efforts to expand affordable broadband access and help bridge the digital divide. Montgomery Connects Program Director Mitsuko Herrera tells ILSR that the county just received a $10 million grant from the State of Maryland to expand FiberNet and MoCoNet’s free 300 Mbps offering to 1,547 low-income and affordable housing units at seven properties operated by the County’s Housing Opportunities Commission.
Timnath, Colorado Breaks Ground On New $20 Million Fiber Build
Timnath, Colorado officials have broken ground on a new $20 million fiber network that should dramatically expand affordable fiber access to the town of 7,100 residents. Working in partnership with the city of Loveland’s Pulse Fiber, the project has been several years in the making, and – as with most of the successful municipal operations in Colorado – was fueled by ongoing public frustration with the speed, availability, and cost of monopoly-dominated regional broadband access.
Southern Ute Indian Tribe ‘In The Driver’s Seat’ As Open Access Fiber Network Transforms Reservation
Among the burgeoning number of Tribal networks being built across Indian Country, a new fiber-to-the-home (FTTH) network spanning the Southern Ute Indian Reservation is unique. When service was lit up in Ignacio, Colorado in May, the network became the only open access network owned by a Tribal government, providing its residents with a choice between two different Internet Service Providers (ISP) offering lightning-fast connection speeds.
Kendall County, Illinois Builds Its Own Fiber Network After Being Snubbed By Monopolies
Frustrated by years of substandard broadband service from regional telecom monopolies, Kendall County, Illinois has entered into a public-private partnership with Pivot-Tech to bring a combination of fixed wireless and fiber to county residents. Kendall County officials tell ILSR that the full cost of the network, which will include private investment from Pivot-Tech, is expected to ultimately be $67 million, serving more than 13,000 locations county wide.
Mapping Digital Sovereignty Across Indian Country As Tribal Broadband Soars
In honor of Indigenous Peoples’ Day, ILSR celebrates the growing number of Tribal nations exercising digital sovereignty by building Tribally-owned broadband networks. Our freshly updated Indigenous Networks map and census highlights the burgeoning Tribal broadband movement, offering a window into this critical work across Indian Country. Our updates underscore how much has changed since 2020 when ILSR first undertook research on Tribal networks.
Maine Issues RFP For Long-Planned MOOSE Net Middle Mile Fiber Network
The Maine Connectivity Authority (MCA) is seeking proposals to help design and construct a major 536-mile fiber middle network that should dramatically improve affordable fiber access across vast swaths of the Pine Tree State. The RFP process closed on September 30 and partner selection will be completed by late October. Designs will be completed and presented to MCA in early 2025, and from that point construction is expected to take around two years to complete.
AAPB Launches New Mentorship Program For Communities Considering Municipal Broadband
The American Association for Public Broadband (AAPB) has launched a mentorship program that will pair communities interested in building publicly-owned, locally controlled broadband networks with cities and towns that have successfully done so. The AAPB mentorship program is the second major tool that the national nonprofit organization has created this year to assist communities in advancing a model that typically leads to lower prices, faster speeds, and more reliable service for end-users.
Coalition Building Success Takes Center Screen On B4DE Livestream
As Digital Inclusion Week 2024 swings into action, frontline digital inclusion practitioners from across the nation will come together for a timely Building for Digital Equity (#B4DE) livestream event today that focuses on “Coalition Building for Success.” The keynote speaker for the third #B4DE will be Georgia Savage, Deputy Director of #OaklandUndivided, who helped lead the way to securing $38.5 million in grant funding last week that will expand broadband infrastructure and distribute Internet-connected devices to thousands of low-income households across East and West Oakland, California.
Two Alabama Cooperatives Win Grant Funding to Expand Fiber Service
The Central Alabama Electric Cooperative and the Farmers Telecommunications Corp. were among winners in Alabama's latest round of grant funding awards to expand broadband access.