RICHMOND, Va. - High-speed Internet networks operated by municipalities and nonprofits are fighting a pitched battle against the Comcasts and Verizons of the world, and the political and financial hurdles which small-scale Internet providers face are significant.

Nearly 400 communities nationwide have some form of publicly-owned Internet service. Christopher Mitchell, director of the Community Broadband Networks Initiative with the Institute for Local Self-Reliance, says choice is at the heart of this Internet alternative - or more accurately, the lack of choice.

"Fundamentally, there's a lack of competition," says Mitchell. "The reason cities step into this space is often because we don't believe the private sector is capable of resolving that lack of competition on its own."

Some cities and local governments have had difficulty keeping the community Internet provider model afloat. Libertarians and conservatives tend to oppose it as something government shouldn't be involved in. Yet there are success stories, such as Chattanooga, Tennessee, where citizens access a city-owned fiber optic network for less than $70 a month.

There's a large cluster of nonprofit networks in southwestern Virginia and a few more in the upper Shenandoah Valley, but not everyone thinks they should be there. Ryan Radia, associate director of technology studies with the Competitive Enterprise Institute in Washington, D.C., cites Pew Research statistics which claim one in four Americans don't have broadband at home - because they don't want it.

"A non-trivial portion of Americans, especially in some of the cities where we see these networks, don't value broadband," says Radia. "I am troubled by the idea of the government providing it."

Mitchell, on the other hand, says community broadband networks are important because they go up against a handful of companies with a stranglehold on the business. He says in his hometown of St. Paul, Minnesota, he - or anyone else - would have a difficult time competing with Comcast to provide Internet access.

"I'd probably need to raise about $200 million to build a network that would compete with them," says Mitchell. "But as soon as I did that, Comcast would cut its rates significantly, and people - being very price-sensitive - would decide not to go with my new, faster, better service."

Mitchell says community networks are often demonized by big cable and telephone companies for "failing" when they don't create profits in the first three years - a nearly impossible standard. But he notes the point of community-based Internet is to provide a service first, not make a profit. Mitchell adds few would demand local governments turn a "profit" on roads they manage within three years of building them.


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Advocates are cheering the General Assembly for legislation protecting Marylanders' data privacy and are calling on Gov. Wes Moore to sign the bill.

The Maryland Online Privacy Protection Act of 2024 would limit data collection by tech companies as well as their ability to bury unfavorable terms in complex license agreements.

R.J. Cross, director of the Don't Sell My Data Campaign for the Public Interest Research Group, said the new law is a win for consumers.

"No one reads those long privacy policies. They're often vague and full of legalese and so, hiding what a company wants to do with your data there is pretty duplicitous and not being consumer friendly," Cross contended. "The Maryland law takes a very different approach and said it's not enough; you can't just hide things in your fine print. You need to have good data practices that protect people upfront."

She pointed out the Maryland law would be one of the strongest in the nation. If Gov. Moore signs the bill, it would go into effect in October 2025.

The bill gives consumers the right to have some personal data deleted and places limits on the kind of widespread monitoring used to generate targeted advertising. Cross noted such data collection is common.

"A lot of our favorite websites and apps are gathering things like what you've searched for online, every website you visited, your location, maybe even your entire phone contact list," Cross outlined. "It has turned around and sold that information to companies that you've probably never even heard of."

With data breaches consistently making news, Cross added the bill will improve Marylanders' personal security.

"A lot of what this will do is limit how much data is being collected about you and sold, which will help your personal security in a big way," Cross explained. "The more data that companies collect about you, and the more they sell it to other companies, the more likely it's going to be exposed in a breach or a hack."


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Florida residents can now file their simple income-tax forms for free and save time through the Internal Revenue Service's Direct File pilot program. It's estimated the simplified filing process could eventually save Florida taxpayers more than $530 million in filing fees every year.

With the April 15 income-tax filing deadline right around the corner, Adam Ruben, vice president for campaigns and political strategy at the Economic Security Project, said you can easily use the program by visiting the website Directfile.IRS.gov.

"It's an interview-based questionnaire," Ruben said. "So it's something that people can use on their phones on their computers available in English and Spanish that asks people questions and pretty much plain language, and you fill in the answers. And it fills in the tax form for you."

Florida is one of a dozen states where IRS Direct File is a pilot project. If it were to expand nationwide and be available to more taxpayers, Ruben estimated that within five years, it could save Americans $8 billion in tax-preparation fees and another $3 billion worth of time annually.

However, opponents have argued that the government is wasting resources and will snag business from professional tax preparers and programs that have lobbied against Direct File.

Chris Moreno, director of financial capability for Catalyst Miami, a nonprofit that works with communities through a variety of free services, said a stress-free filing process that can be done from the comfort of your home or the convenience of your phone is worth taking advantage of.

"If you are an average worker who gets a W-2 - you're employed for a company, you don't own any companies or businesses - you'd probably be the ideal candidate for someone to be able to use Direct File this year," Moreno said.

While a free-file program has been available, many taxpayers were unaware they had access to it. An investigation by ProPublica revealed tactics by Intuit, maker of TurboTax, to cloud the free-file program.

And state auditors, comptrollers and treasurers in 18 states - including Florida - sent a letter in March to the federal government urging the termination of Direct File. They claimed it might lead to confusion about state tax filings, potentially resulting in penalties and loss of state refunds.


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As out-of-state, and sometimes disreputable companies offering solar installations crowd the market, a local effort called Solarize aims to connect residents and small businesses with pre-screened solar contractors, while also providing discounts on installation.

Nick Hartnett, Pure Power Solar and Solarize partner, said residents considering solar should find local companies, read reviews, and talk to customers who've had systems installed, adding the Solarize program is designed to do the legwork.

"There's a lot of aggressive sales techniques. And so, when companies that aren't really invested in the local community, and don't plan on being there, for a while, come in with a goal to just sell as much as they can," he said.

David Gomez of Daily Green Power, another Solarize installation partner, says his company went through a thorough analysis based on experience and work quality to be selected as a vetted contractor.

Andy McDonald, Solarize Frankfort Coordinator, said enrolling in Solarize allows residents to get a free solar assessment and installation estimate from contractors screened to work for the program.

"There's no obligation of people to buy anything. If after they get an assessment from Solarize Frankfort, they want to go get estimates from other contractors, they're welcome to do that. But they'll be empowered with information from us about the solar potential on their property," he continued.

Frankfort homeowner David Hensley said after doing online research on solar installation, he decided to use Solarize.

"The price was actually lower than it would have been if I'd gone out by myself. Plus the fact that these people had a good reputation, they've been vetted by both local and state agencies. That made me feel quite confident in the decision just to simply go with them, " he explained.

A few months later, Hensley is saving money on his electricity bills and is playing his part in reducing carbon emissions, he said.