More Coloradans Set to Vote on Municipal Broadband in November

At least five municipalities and three counties with opt-out ballots this year could join more than 90 other cities and nearly 30 counties that earlier opted out, statewide local association officials said. Colorado has 64 counties and 271 municipalities total, and many southeastern counties haven’t had ballot votes. The cities with ballots this year are Aurora, Erie, Salida, Florence and Canon City, and the counties are Grand, Chaffee and Fremont, with possibly more to come. The winner of Colorado's attorney general race may also affect broadband issues, with former Obama adviser Phil Weiser (D) pledging to support local broadband (see 1804160032).

Upcoming ballots show continuing dissatisfaction by Coloradans with available broadband speeds, said Colorado Municipal League Deputy Director Kevin Bommer. He predicted communities will vote yes by large margins, as in previous elections (see 1804040050, 1711080024 and 1611090024). Many already voted to opt out, but “interest has not waned,” agreed Colorado Counties Inc. Policy Director Eric Bergman. ISPs largely backed off opposing opt-out votes by Colorado communities, Bommer said, though last year industry spent more than $900,000 -- unsuccessfully -- to try to stop Fort Collins citizens from authorizing $150 million in debt for a network (see 1712110020). No other community is at the point where it would need a similar vote, he said.

Voting “builds good community” that provides momentum for a local broadband project, said San Miguel County Administrator Lynn Black. San Miguel is nearing completion of a middle-mile project after becoming one of the first Colorado communities to opt out when more than 80 percent voted yes in the 2014 election, she said. Opting out gives communities “so many more options,” she said.

Local governments used to push for reversing SB-152 but now have “effectively circumvented” the law with opt-out votes, said Bergman. Reversing SB-152 may not be necessary, said Bommer. Holding the vote “is one step in a lengthy process,” and the votes show demand that’s hard to dismiss even against powerful ISP lobbying, he said: “There’s power in those votes.”

A 2018 Colorado law that shifted more state telecom support to broadband (see 1804020053) increased opportunity for public-private partnerships, Bergman said. Those grants are reserved for private providers, but voting to opt out puts localities firmly in the conversation about where broadband should be deployed, he said. The state law specified grants should go to projects with local support, he added. Opting out of SB-152 “starts the conversation” and could lead to private expansion, public-private partnership or a municipally owned broadband network, Bommer said. The 2018 broadband funding law may improve the business case for companies to deploy either by themselves or by partnering with cities, he said. If deployment happens without a community opt-out vote, “that’s fine,” he said.

“The costs and risks associated with municipal entry are well documented, and CenturyLink believes that the citizens of a community have the right to weigh those costs and risks through the election process,” the ILEC’s spokeswoman said. “It is important for citizens to understand that there are other ways for their municipality to achieve its goals by exploring public-private partnerships with existing internet service providers, such as CenturyLink. These creative solutions can bring the technologies communities need and the expertise to run a network, as well as the ability to plan for future upgrades in a dynamic environment where technology changes rapidly, while limiting the financial risk to citizens,” she said. Comcast and Charter didn’t comment.

Managing expectations is the biggest risk with the ballot votes, Bergman said. Constituents vote yes because they want faster broadband; one year later, they’ll ask why it’s not faster yet, he said. “You need to really make sure you have a plan in place and your messaging needs to reflect that” it’s “one small step on the way to getting our community connected.”

Getting from ballot vote to deployment is tough in rural localities, where officials “wear many hats” and aren’t necessarily engineers, said Black. Finding a “community champion” and seeking state and regional assistance is key, the county administrator said.

San Miguel County is about 70 percent public land, with mountains in the east and high-mesa deserts in the west, and the nearest big town 60 miles away, Black said. Population is about 8,000, but up to 12,000 tourists attend festivals and the Telluride ski resort yearly, Black said. “The best you could get was DSL,” with visitors frequently asking, “Where’s my Wi-Fi?” CenturyLink and Charter service is available inside town, but people outside towns often lack access, she said. Also, having a redundant network may have prevented four to five recent 911 outages in the area from fiber cuts, she said.

After the county’s 2014 ballot vote, it hired consultants to make an implementation plan and got funding for a middle-mile network from the Colorado Department of Local Affairs, Black said. The county hopes to finish the project by the end of June, she said. The middle-mile network will support 1 Gbps speeds and is open access so any private ISP may sell service to consumers, she said. “We have a couple local ISPs that are looking to do it,” said Black, doubting CenturyLink would participate. Black wants to put terms in transport contracts requiring net neutrality rules like what the FCC rescinded in December, she noted. “It’s my own little statement.”