Southeastern Missouri residents in three counties will soon have Fiber-to-the-home (FTTH) available through the Pemiscot-Dunklin Electric Cooperative. The new project marks yet another opportunity for rural residents and businesses to obtain high-quality connectivity from their electric service providers.… Read More
Joe Maxwell of the Organization for Competitive Markets details how our economy is tilted against family farms and rural communities, and how he’s working to build a political movement to change that.… Read More
John Ikerd, an agricultural economist, sits down with Stacy Mitchell to discuss the consolidation of our food system and why he supports family farms as opposed to corporate mega-farms.… Read More
A recent proposal being considered by the FCC that has raised the loudest outcry has been the status of mobile broadband in rural areas. Now that Verizon is discontinuing rural subscriber accounts, the FCC will be able to see those concerns come to life. Dear John… The company has decided to cut service to scores of customers in 13 … Read More
Minnesota’s governor recently vetoed anti-renewables legislation that threatens rural solar development, but the bill’s likely resurgence means the state remains among a growing crop of Midwestern states facing the prospect of heavy-handed limitations on solar growth. The Minnesota legislation would have exempted rural electric cooperatives from all oversight of distributed generation policy by state regulators, putting … Read More
Another year in Missouri and another bill from the big telephone companies to limit broadband competition in the state house. The bill introduced by Senator Ed Emery (R-Lamar), SB 186, seeks to limit the power of municipalities to provide competition to entrenched incumbent Internet Service Providers.… Read More
As SB 186 sits patiently in committee, advocates of better broadband from the private and public sectors are banding together to share their thoughts on the bill. They believe that the bill will stifle attempts to improve connectivity throughout the state. In a recent letter to the Chair and members of the the Missouri Senate Local Government and Elections Committee, they laid out the other reasons why SB 186 should not advance.… Read More
With each new legislative session come the new bills from the incumbents aiming to limit competition. We typically expect at least one and begin looking for them early in January as legislatures begin assembling in state capitols; this year the anti-muni efforts begin in Virginia and Missouri. “Show-Me” Your Bill Missouri’s communities have been the object … Read More
This is an update of analysis done back in June, state-by-state information has been updated, however, conclusions have largely been left the same, see the original post here. Citizen-sponsored ballot initiatives frequently demand progress on renewable energy implementation (and have for years), oftentimes these occur when state legislatures show little to no political will to increase locally-owned solar … Read More
