Officials Can’t Say How Government-Owned Internet Will Create Jobs

NASHVILLE — Kimball, Tenn., Mayor Rex Pesnell said broadband Internet in his town of about 1,400 will help economic development, but so far he’s short on specifics.

Officials in this small Marion County town recently passed a resolution asking state legislators to reconsider a law forbidding government-owned Internet providers from expanding beyond original municipal lines.

In this case, Pesnell and other town officials want the broadband service that nearby Chattanooga’s Electric Power Board, a public utility, offers.

As reported, EPB competes in Chattanooga against private providers such as Comcast and offers ultra-high-speed Internet through a smart grid, which cost taxpayers $111 million via federal stimulus money.

Internet is already available in Kimball but not broadband.

Even if you were traveling through the town, Pesnell, says, you can pick up the Internet on your smartphone.

So, how, exactly, would broadband Internet help bring jobs to the town?

“We just feel that it’s something that we need,” Pesnell said.

But what about research that shows most people use the Internet for entertainment, instead of creating jobs?

Are Pesnell and other officials developing a formal proposal to show how they would use broadband Internet to stimulate Kimball’s economy?

“No, there is nothing at this time,” Pesnell said, adding there’s no indication the town’s private Internet Service Provider plans to bring in broadband any time soon.

What about the rest of the county? How badly does it need broadband?

Marion County Mayor David Jackson, who is also formally asking state legislators to review the state law on the matter, didn’t return four requests for comment this week.

County Commissioner Louin Campbell, who said he doesn’t use the Internet, said the county’s economy is doing all right.

“We have about five industrial companies and they are hiring some, although our county could use a few more jobs, but we aren’t in dire need of jobs,” Campbell said.

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