News
Helene drives push for stronger emergency communications
Officials at the June 22 GROW NC meeting said strengthening communications infrastructure has become one of the state's top public safety priorities.
Opinion
Broadband access is a necessity
Running a small business isn’t easy in the best of times, and these aren’t the best of times. Social distancing and concerns over spreading COVID-19 forced many small businesses to try to connect with customers online rather than in person, but here’s the catch: Some businesses can’t easily do that. I grew up in North...
Opinion
Broadband tops list of legislative priorities for upcoming session
The General Assembly will convene its biennial session Jan. 13. They’ll talk about how to get the economy back on its feet, address a learning gap in education, improve access to quality health care at an affordable price, put together a tax and spending plan and begin the centennial redistricting process. But perhaps the most immediate...
Opinion
Cooper blunders on rural broadband
Local communities, legislators, and businesses are having a hard time understanding why Gov. Roy Cooper’s budget office pulled the plug on $32 million in grants for rural broadband projects that had attracted 70 applicants. Although some have raised concerns Cooper is redirecting the money to a pet project, the issue seems as likely to be...
Opinion
State reserves may not be enough
Employers are hiring people back, but not as robustly as we need them to. North Carolina’s labor market is still down 326,000 jobs since February.
Opinion
Local governments still don’t need to get in the broadband business
In 2011, a then-new Republican majority in the N.C. General Assembly was alarmed at an expensive new trend in local government. Residents in Wilson, Salisbury, Mooresville, Davidson, and Morganton were being hit with higher taxes and even electricity and water rates as their cities were bleeding money. Why? To pay for their cities’ decision to...
Opinion
Stay the course in 2018 for short-session success
The N.C. General Assembly is scheduled to return for the 2018 short legislative session on Wednesday, May 16. There’s speculation on what they will do and just how short the short session will be. Analysts and lobbyists are asking where they will go and what it will mean beyond the summer of 2018. The best answer...
Opinion
BRIGHT Futures Act applies urban values to rural communities
Many people choose to live in rural areas because they don't want big-city folks to tell them what they should value.
Opinion
FCC Should Let Markets Work
Past experience and common sense argue against governments leaping into areas best left for competitive markets and private enterprises to sort out.
Opinion
Because Infrastructure is Valuable
A truly modern, market-friendly infrastructure strategy would seek to minimize government distortions of the transportation, broadband, and energy markets.
Opinion
Flashback: Monorails Of The Decade
Municipalities seem to be under the impression that their citizens will lack access to the Internet without government intervention.
