Act Now! Bill Limiting Municipal Broadband Initiatives Up for Hearing

On Tuesday at 8:30 a.m., the Senate Committee on Commerce will hold a hearing on SB 304. This bill purports to keep government from entering the telecommunications market, but if passed its effects will be much broader and could have an enormous fiscal impact on cities across Kansas. One unintended consequence of the bill is that it’s currently written so that cities could not lease public facilities, like water towers, to telecommunications companies for the purpose of delivering cell phone service to their customers. This provision would cost cities millions of dollars each year that they currently collect by leasing public property to providers like AT&T, Verizon, and Sprint, which could dramatically change the level of coverage throughout the state. Additionally, cities may not be able to offer Wi-Fi in public buildings, build broadband systems for industrial parks, or use fiber to read electric meters, a cost-effective strategy that saves local governments and taxpayers substantial amounts of money.

In addition, the bill not only prohibits municipalities from forming public-private partnerships to construct high-quality broadband systems, it would prevent cities from building broadband infrastructure that private companies could use to deliver their service. A supposed exception exists for unserved areas, but the bill is written so that cities with unreliable satellite or wireless broadband coverage would be precluded from partnering to build their own networks. Companies who have shown interest in joining with cities to build high-speed networks, would not be able to pursue those projects if the community had access to low-quality, intermittent broadband service.

SB 304 is especially troubling for rural communities, because large broadband providers have openly stated that building infrastructure in those cities is not cost-effective and therefore not a priority. Municipal broadband has served as a critical economic development tool in several communities attracting private companies that would otherwise have to locate to metropolitan areas. As large providers turn away from rural Kansas, this bill would leave its cities with fewer options for attracting modern businesses.

If SB 304 passes, local governments will have no options aside from begging companies to invest in new networks, and could not offer any inducements.

The League will be testifying in strong opposition to this bill on Tuesday. Right now the bill is scheduled to be worked on Thursday.

Action Requested: Please consider testifying against this bill. It would be great to have a packed room. Also, please contact your senators and members of the Senate Committee on Commerce and ask them to reject this legislation. The committee members' contact information is as follows:

Senate Commerce Committee: Sen. Julia Lynn (R-9), Chair, [email protected], (785) 296-7382 Sen. Susan Wagle (R-30), Vice Chair, [email protected], (785) 296-2419 Sen. (D-3), Ranking Minority Member, [email protected], (785) 296-7372 Sen. Pat Apple (R-37), [email protected], (785) 296-7368 Sen. (R-8), [email protected], (785) 296-7394 Sen. Jay Emler (R-35), [email protected], (785) 296-7354 Sen. Oletha Faust-Goudeau (D-29), [email protected], (785) 296- 7387 Sen. (R-17), [email protected], (785) 296-7384 Sen. (R-11), [email protected], (785) 296-7301 Sen. Robert Olson (R-23), [email protected], (785) 296-7358 Sen. Mary Pilcher-Cook (R-10), [email protected], (785) 296-7362

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