LAYTON—Cities throughout the state have either chosen to build their own tax-funded broadband networks or are considering whether to bring it into their community. A Utah based education campaign NoGovInternet has been created to provide citizens the opportunity to hear the pros and cons and be part of the discussion of their city bringing in fiber before the decision is made.

“It’s a small show with me leading the charge,” said former Speaker Greg Hughes, spokesman for NoGovInternet. “The purpose of it is going into communities, to have town hall meetings to talk about some of the decisions that cities are making in real time about whether to get into the internet business or not to take out debt to be able to provide fiber and faster internet than maybe their cities have at the moment.”

There have been some pretty contentious ballot measures in cities, he said. “There’s been some discord as some of this has rolled out. So we thought about getting upstream and starting to share some good information about how that works – if that works and some of the take out rates.”

Discussions before a decision is even made might bring a little greater awareness to the decision, said Hughes. “So you’re not seeing these contentious ballot measures after a city has been approached. It looks like it makes perfect sense, they move forward, citizens find out and there’s a bit of a recoil.”

Hughes said when he was asked to lead the campaign he thought they should hold town hall meetings with people the citizens have elected. “Not just in the legislature but your Sheriff, a City Council member, lawmaker, county officials – people who are elected come to a Saturday meeting and invite the public. You’re inviting the public at a time that isn’t a transactional meeting. No one is there to get your vote. No one’s there to tell you not to vote for something.” What it is, is to have a discussion, he said. “Let’s see what is top of mind for the people that have been elected to represent you. More importantly what constituents are worried about.”

Hughes said he wanted to have a broader conversation. “I want to talk about NoGovInternet.com or cities getting into the internet business in a proper context with all the things we’re grappling with in the state of Utah, be it quality of life, cost of living, transportation issues, cost of housing or public safety.”

These meetings have been phenomenal, he said. “There’s been a good spirit about them. All the feedback I’ve received about these meetings has been positive.”

SB165 was passed during the legislative session, it brings new accountability to how cities handle broadband spending, said Hughes. “I didn’t lobby for any bill during the general session. Sen. Lincoln Fillmore ran a bill that created a process for cities that are considering getting into the internet business to hold a public hearing, put together an independent study that would show what the cost would be, how many customers do they have to have to sign up for the service to pay for it. How long do you have to get to that profitability.”

Just the existence of the bill does two things, he said. “One, hopefully it gets people talking sooner than later so you don’t have contentious ballot measures. Two, we think having a real transparent process that a city would enter into that lane of becoming an internet company prevents a lot of pitfalls and unintended consequences.”

Senate President Stuart Adams was recently honored by the Utah Taxpayers Association and NoGovInternet with the Friends of Transparency Award for his support on SB165. 

“Utah is the best state in the nation, there’s no question about it,” said Adams. “We’ve been rated three years in a row by US News & World Report as not only one of the best economies but one of the best states in the nation to live in.”

Adams said in Utah they believe in the free market. “We believe that government is not the answer, it’s actually the private sector that’s the answer. We need to let the private sector be strong because that’s what produces the tax revenue for us to be able to function in government.”

When people are given the right decisions whether it’s the legislature or the public in general to see the entire landscape or have all the information they make good decisions, he said. “Getting the right information out and being transparent is really important because if you’re not you can make wrong decisions.”

For more information about NoGovInternet and to get updates on future events visit https://nogovinternet.eventbrite.com.