Cheap and Fast Municipal ISPs are Blocked in Almost Half of the US

Every year, BroadbandNow delves into the world of municipal broadband with a report on which states have made it illegal for towns and cities and counties to set up their own ISPs, or make it really difficult.  The report for 2020, written by telecom analyst Kendra Chamberlain, has a silver lining, though. Since the 2019 report, the number of states actively blocking or outlawing municipal broadband has dropped from 25 to 22. Those three states now allowing muni-based internet are Arkansas, California (which actually passed a law in 2018 to stop restrictions), and Connecticut. In addition, seven states now have task forces in place to try to get more broadband: Idaho, Louisiana, Minnesota, North Carolina, Oregon, Texas, and Washington. The reason tends to be that lawmakers finally see the gaps in broadband coverage, and sometimes only locals are in a position to do something about it—or they're the only ones who care, since major ISPs don’t want to move into an area that won't give them more cost benefits.