As the Georgia legislature considers HB 282, a bill that will restrict local governments from investing in telecommunications networks, we are continuing coverage of the communities that will be harmed by passage of the legislation.

Should the restrictions become law, existing networks will not be able to expand. No expansion means fewer opportunities to reap the benefits that flow naturally from community networks. While this means few residents will receive access in places like Thomasville and Moultrie, it also means fewer businesses will receive access in places where networks exclusively serve commercial customers and government offices. 

LaGrange's IT Director, Alan Slaughenhaupt, told us a little about its municipal network that began in 1996. The community decided to build its own network when no private provider would. The first goal was to get the K-12 schools connected. Bonds funded the network build out and were paid off within five years. At the time, the city partnered with ISN (Later Earthlink) to get the schools connected. LaGrange now partners with Charter Communications to bring connectivity to students.

The LaGrange network now connects hospitals, most city, county, and state government facilities, and provides connectivity for businesses.  Alan describes how a T1 connection cost local businesses $2,300 per month in 1996. Now, thanks to competition created by the community owned network, local businesses can pay just $100 for a connection with better capacity. The municipal network serves about 400 commercial customers.

Alan explained that the automaker Kia moved a manufacturing facility near LaGrange in 2009 that used Just-In-Time inventory control. It needed a high-speed connection between the main plant and suppliers that LaGrange could deliver.

The move created 2,500 new jobs at the factory, each paying between $14.90 and $23.50 per hour. Along with the positions in the factory, came 3,000 auto-related jobs with suppliers located near the facility. Today, Kia has moved its main manufacturing to a different location and a different network, but its suppliers...

In 2011, MSNBC reported on Thomasville, Georgia. The small community beat the odds to nourish a vibrant downtown. At the time, local independent businesses in the U.S. disappeared as quaint main streets lost mom and pop ventures to the economy.

Such was not the case with Thomasville. MSNBC's report, a little over 2 minutes and embedded below, looked at how Thomasville had managed to created a thriving downtown economy filled with independent businesses. Thomasville leaders partnered with the private sector, concentrated on preserving its historic identity, and built a next generation fiber optic network. Thomasville's ability to merge yesterday and today worked.

Thomasville began construction of its own fiber optic network in 1995 to serve schools, libraries, businesses, and hospitals. At the time, the private sector was not interested in serving the area. Several other communities in the region began similar projects and, in 1997, those communities joined together to form the South Georgia Governmental Services Authority (SGGSA). In 1998, Cairo, Camilla, Moultrie and Thomasville created Community Network Services (CNS) through the Authority in order to offer services to residents. Since then, the collaboration has expanded from telecommunications services only to also providing high-speed Internet and television.

As Georgia mulls over HB282, this video shows how a next generation network is vital in similar communities. The legislation will strip local authorities of the ability to build their own next-generation networks as long as the private sector is providing some below-basic level of service. If the bill passes, many Georgia communities that need the benefits of a local network will never get the opportunity. From the CNS website:

The best part about CNS is that it is funded locally, by the cities which it serves. This means if you are a CNS customer, you are investing in your own communities, not a corporation headquartered across the country.

...

In the 30 hours since we learned of a bill in Georgia to revoke local authority to decide for themselves if a broadband network is a wise investment, we have seen a big response! Some of that is detailed below, but what matters for now is that HB 282 was bumped from today to next week.

The committee roster is here, please keep spreading the word and making phone calls. If you have contacts in Georgia that want more detail, send them our way.

The Georgia Municipal Association Blog quickly explained why this bill limits the ability of towns to attract jobs to their communities.

The fundamental question is rather simple, does Georgia want local leaders to determine the economic and investment strategies for their communities or do we want those decisions to be made solely on the business plan of companies based outside of the state?

And they go on to quote the former City Manager of Adel:

After much deliberation and public demand, the City of Adel launched our wireless internet system, Southlink, in 2003. There were NO INCUMBENT, HIGH-SPEED PROVIDERS at that time with no indication of interest by anyone. The City of Adel did what no investor-owned company would consider, yet the citizens and businesses in Adel deserved the service just as much as those citizens of Atlanta, Macon, Augusta or Savannah. The business plan worked and we gained customers. Within four years of our launch, both Alltel and Mediacom launched true high-speed service to the area. With our original intent served, we then dismantled the wireless system in 2009 and 2010 and the citizens had service options.

We did not launch the service to compete with incumbent providers and we gave them every chance to provide the service. Did our positive action create the impetus for other providers to bring in their service? I will let you decide that.

And finally, the video below notes how the city of Thomasville benefited from building its own network.

Karl Bode, of DSL Reports,...