Ownership Matters
by Ted Howard
Yes! A Journal of Positive Futures, Spring 1999

Page 4 of 6
". . . on behalf of 10,000 cities"

While many municipalities in recent years have privatized some city services and functions of government, many others have established city-owned and operated, profit-making ventures in an effort to generate additional revenues, create jobs, and increase responsiveness to community needs and interests.

Municipal programs to turn organic waste into marketable fertilizer and soil supplements are thriving in cities like San Francisco and Austin and rural communities like Mecklenburg County, North Carolina. In the Washington, DC suburbs, Montgomery County's composting facility sold nearly $500,000 worth of its Leafgro soil supplement to nurseries, retailers and area residents.

A big area for potential growth of city-owned enterprise is in telecommunications services. As access to cutting-edge technologies becomes ever more essential, community-owned telecom companies have sprung up across the U.S. to provide service when corporate interest has been inadequate or nonexistent.

In Glasgow, Kentucky, population 14,000, city leaders became concerned over the high prices being charged by the local cable provider. Bills were running $40 per month -- a price equal to that of the average person's electric bill. The electric utility was already owned by the town, so it wasn't a big leap for Glasgow leaders to set out to build a telecommunications venture that could integrate cost savings for cable and electric customers by enhancing efficiency and competition.

Thanks to their efforts, Glasgow residents today enjoy benefits of cutting-edge technologies most people in the US don't even dream about.

Their telecommunications utility provides Internet access 100 times faster than a telephone modem can provide, and residents pay only $11.95 a month for unlimited use. In addition, Glasgow's city-wide "Intranet" links the resources of local government, businesses, libraries, schools and neighbors.

Glasgow residents also have a choice of cable TV providers; its community-owned service offers 53 cable TV channels for under $15.00 a month. Glasgow has even become the only U.S. city that offers its residents an alternative to the local commercial phone service provider.

This linked infrastructure of electricity and telecommunications has enabled Glasgow residents to overhaul the way they purchase energy, with revolutionary potential. Most Americans receive electric bills indicating the total kilowatt hours consumed in a month. The Glasgow Electric Plant Board (GEPB) -- in conjunction with the Tennessee Valley Authority from whom Glasgow purchases its energy -- has installed hardware and software capable of measuring household energy use in more detail. GEPB can post usage information to a household's private homepage, informing residents about the hourly energy consumption of their water heaters, air conditioners, and other appliances.

By charging lower rates for cable, telephone and data communication, Glasgow's municipal enterprise has helped keep more money in its own retail economy. Says Ray, "lower cable rates have saved residents at least $10 million, and its ability to more efficiently manage electrical power has saved residents more than $1,750,000 over that same period. This is money that stays in the community and is circulated time and again helping local businesses and the families they support."

In addition, Glasgow has prospered economically as businesses have expanded or relocated to the area in order to access the potential of the broadband network.

Not surprisingly, national telecommunication corporations have had a hostile response to these community entrepreneurship, using tactics ranging from lawsuits to legislation in an attempt to keep Glasgow from posting a competitive threat. "It's a war we are fighting on behalf of 10,000 cities," says Ray.

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