Why North Kansas City pays its residents’ internet bills, and your city doesn’t pay yours

In  North Kansas City, residents get a steady online connection covered by their taxes. Anyone there who signs up for KC Fiber can get internet service with no monthly bill. And not just a janky dial-up connection — it’s high-speed gigabit internet, at speeds comparable to Google Fiber, AT&T or Spectrum. It took $10 million from the city’s hefty gambling tax revenue and eight years of troubleshooting while dodging a legal challenge from a telecommunications provider and a state legislature restricting city-run broadband. North Kansas City is one of few cities in the country that give away high-speed fiber internet service to residents as a basic city service. The City Council “saw it as a city utility, very similar to water and wastewater,” said Kim Nakahodo, North Kansas City’s deputy city administrator. She said the council members hoped free internet would seduce businesses and residents to North Kansas City.