La Plata County, the towns of Bayfield and Ignacio, and the city of Durango all have placed on the November ballot questions seeking voter approval for opting out of legislative restrictions on local control of telecommunications resources. As chair of the Southwest Colorado Council of Governments, I urge all citizens to vote “yes” on these propositions.
The story of these initiatives goes back to 2005, when the Legislature passed SB 152 at the behest of large telecommunication companies such as CenturyLink. The statute restricts the ability of local governments to facilitate or provide telecommunication services, such as high speed Internet, ostensibly to prevent government competition with the private sector. Its effect, however, is to mandate needless duplication of infrastructure or to prevent local governments from filling a void created by private sector inaction.
The city of Durango, for example, as part of its Main Avenue sidewalk project, installed conduit and fiber that could serve businesses and residents along the street with high-speed Internet. However, SB 152 would require private companies to duplicate the city’s investment, rather than leasing from the city, needlessly increasing the cost of service.
As a result of such restrictions, SWCCOG members are planning elections to reassert local control. These elections are especially important in our region because in 2010, the SWCCOG received a $3 million grant from the Department of Local Affairs, matched with $1 million from SWCCOG members, to implement a high capacity telecommunications network for the regional governments. Since completion of the associated projects, SWCCOG members have been limited in our ability to leverage these resources to benefit our communities, owing to the restrictions unnecessarily imposed by SB 152.
Please vote yes on Question 1B on the La Plata County ballot and, depending on where you live, on Question 2A in Ignacio, Question 2B in Bayfield, or Question 2C in Durango.
Dick White
Durango
