(The Center Square) – Florida’s government-owned broadband networks are underperforming as a whole and costing taxpayers money, according to a new report.
Government-owned networks do not have the same pressure as private internet service providers (ISPs) and therefore face fewer consequences for poor performance, according to an analysis by the James Madison Institute’s Center for Technology and Innovation, a Tallahassee-based conservative think tank.
Every year since 2020, an average of $90 billion has been spent on private broadband investment, up from $69 billion a decade earlier. In Florida alone, Spectrum Internet has put $7 billion toward rural fiber construction.
Despite billions of private dollars flowing into broadband efforts, multiple cities in Florida are directing taxpayer dollars to create their own broadband networks, the report found.
Ocala’s government-owned network has reached only a little over 10% of the city, serving about 5% of the population, in the 30 years it has been operating, according to the report. Even though the network failed to add one new customer between 2021 and 2024, the city approved $1.6 million in 2025 for new fiber infrastructure and is considering $90 in bond financing for citywide expansion.
Ocala already has at least 13 private broad providers that are faster with comparable or lower prices, the report said.
“When private networks underperform, investors lose their money. When government networks underperform, it’s the taxpayers who lose money. Florida cities should leave broadband to the private sector, which is already delivering results without putting a single taxpayer dollar at risk,” wrote Turner Loesel, a policy analyst for the Center for Technology and Innovation. “If municipal leaders want faster deployment to underserved areas, they should reduce permitting barriers and streamline right-of-way access – not become ISPs themselves.”
Loesel said the argument that government-owned networks keep prices competitive and help underserved communities is not holding water, pointing to research from the University of Pennsylvania that said none of the municipal fiber projects it examined could remain financially operational without outside help. Furthermore, over 70% of them were actively losing money.
Florida put some legal safeguards in place in 2021 to protect against unprofitable government-owned networks. State law requires them to turn a profit within four years. They’re also prohibited from subsidizing with money from other utility services or revenue sources.
Government entities are also required to consider whether broadband services already exist in the area. Despite this requirement, Williston is working on a $4.6 million loan-financed fiber network in a town that already has eleven internet providers, according to the report.
“The track record is clear, the outcomes are predictable, and Florida cities should put a stop to it before more taxpayers foot the bill,” wrote Loesel.
