FHSU Research Affecting Kansas Discourse on Broadband
Posted Wednesday, September 1, 2004 by David Jarnagin

One of the primary activities that Mark Bannister undertook during his sabbatical during the spring of 2004 was to conduct the first comprehensive study of the state of broadband Intenet access deployment in the state of Kansas. This study evaluated data from the Federal Communications Commission, private telecommunications, cable, and wireless providers and the PEW Foundation. Kevin Shaffer joined Bannister as a co-author in writing an article based upon the research. Their article was expedited for publication by the Policy Research Institute at the University of Kansas due to the time sensitive nature of the data. The article was published in the Kansas Policy Review. Kansas Corporation Commission staff and Legislators have already communicated with Bannister and Shaffer and indicated that this study has become very important in the policy discussions on broadband deployment and telecommunications regulation in Kansas. The study showed that Kansas’ rate of broadband deployment exceeds the national deployment rate, but this lead is tenuous and inconsistent. While some communities and regions not only have broadband telecommunications services, they have competitive markets. In contrast other communities and regions lack any service provider. The current statutory and regulatory environment in Kansas has encouraged deployment. Many areas of the state are well served. But substantial regions – typically in the eastern non-metro areas of Kansas still lack coverage. Bannister and Shaffer presented a series of policy options for use by the legislature and Kansas Corporation Commission to potentially bring deployment to underserved areas. They expect to be called upon to testify on the study’s findings during the 2005 legislative session.
The citation to the article is:
Bannister, Mark and Shaffer Kevin, “Broadband Deployment in Kansas 2004,” Kansas Policy Review, Vol. 26, No. 1, Spring 2004.