Chattanooga asks FCC for help in spreading broadband

City officials in Chattanooga (TN), petitioned the Federal Communications Commission to pre-empt a Tennessee law that bans the city from expanding its high-speed Internet network.

The Electric Power Board, which runs the network, has received requests to expand its broadband service to nearby communities, said Danna Bailey, the board’s vice president of corporate communications.

A state law passed in 1999, however, prohibits Chattanooga from offering Internet service beyond the area where it provides electric power. This restriction “frustrates” the intent of Congress, which is to ensure that every American has access to broadband, the petition said. The city asked the FCC to “pre-empt and declare unenforceable” the portion of the state law that prohibits the EPB’s broadband service from being offered outside its service area.