“Muni nets step forward in Louisiana, step back in Congress”

An article from Telephony Online highlights the contrast between Lafayette’s success and the federal threats to local self-determination in the telecommunications sphere.

From the story:

In Lafayette, La., earlier this summer, municipal network advocates won a major victory at the polls, but those fortunes were seemingly reversed recently when Sen. John Ensign (R-Nev.) introduced the first major telecom reform legislation, with provisions that would severely restrict the ability of local governments to build their own broadband networks.

And the author pointedly notes:

There is little doubt that the issue of publicly owned broadband networks will only get more controversial, now that both cable companies — and within the next year, telephone companies — can choose not to sell access to their broadband networks.

Go there and read on…the story is meaty and mentions continued opposition by the incumbents even after the impressive referendum win and competeing bills that favor or oppose municipal telecom builds of the sort Lafayette is engaged in. It’s a good national overview.

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