Opinion: Vermonters need to take control over achieving universal broadband

Evan Carlson is board chair of NEK Community Broadband, one of nine Communications Union Districts (CUD) in Vermont. In a recent newspaper opinion, Carlson presents a central issue, one every Vermont resident and business owner deserves to learn more about. Carlson writes, “Would you trust your neighbors to carry out this mission, or would you place your faith in a telecommunications executive hundreds of miles away?”

Carlson continues, “During the past year, tens of thousands of people across Vermont have experienced the widespread failure of our communications infrastructure as they tried to stay connected through the pandemic. Now, a decade after the last major economic crisis, we are getting another rare opportunity to invest in our state’s future and could finally deliver universal broadband, an issue that has plagued governors, legislators and other statewide office holders for years.”

Read Carlson’s complete opinion piece, published on May 4 in VTDigger.

The Vermont Legislature is currently exploring how best to funnel millions of federal dollars to communities in support of expanding broadband access. H.360 passed the House on March 23. Now in the Senate, it looks as if the bill may be headed to Conference Committee to secure compromise.

DVFiber advocates the empowerment of Vermont’s nine CUDs as the best best to secure broadband access for Vermonters.