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When it comes to the Internet, one size does not fit all.

This is precisely why promoting government-owned broadband networks is bad for consumers. What works better is allowing private-sector Internet service providers the ability to customize to the changing demands and needs in the marketplace.

Not all consumers access the Internet the same way. According to the Pew Research Center, Hispanics and African-Americans are more likely to rely on mobile broadband than traditional wire-line service. Indeed, minority communities are even more likely than the population as a whole to use their smartphones to apply for jobs online.

Our Legislature considered a bill this session that would repeal a state municipal broadband law that prohibits government-owned networks from expanding across their municipal borders. Thankfully, it failed in the House Business and Utilities Subcommittee, but it will undoubtedly be back again in future legislative sessions. The legislation is troubling because it will harm taxpayers and stifle private-sector competition and innovation.

It is not the role of the government to use taxpayer resources to compete with private industry. Government is highly inefficient — usually creating an inferior product at a higher price — and is always slower to respond to market changes. Do we really want government providing our Internet service? Government-run health care hasn't worked so well, so why would we promote government-run Internet?

Chattanooga's Electric Power Board, the city's public utility, is a driving force behind the legislation. The EPB wants state lawmakers to let it offer broadband service beyond its electric service region. Specifically, the EPB is targeting expansion into Bradley County. Current state law prevents this encroachment, as it recognizes that government should not be funding competition with the private sector with taxpayer money — especially outside of a municipality's border.

It's also important to note that the EPB built that network after benefiting from a $111.7 million federal grant through President Barack Obama's stimulus package.

Top EPB officials argue that residents in Bradley County are clambering for EPB-offered Internet service, but the truth is Bradley County is already served by multiple private Internet service providers. Indeed, statewide only 215,000 Tennesseans, or approximately 4 percent, don't have broadband access. We must find ways to address the needs of those residents, but that's not what this bill would do. This bill would promote government providers over private providers, harming taxpayers and consumers along the way.

Additionally, just like people are getting rid of basic at-home telephone service, Americans, especially minorities, are getting rid of at-home broadband. In 2013, 70 percent of Americans had broadband at home. Just two years later, only 67 percent did. The decline was true across almost the entire demographic board, regardless of race, income category, education level or location. Indeed, in 2013, 16 percent of Hispanics said they relied only on their smartphones for Internet access, and by 2015 that figure was up to 23 percent.

That drop in at-home broadband isn't because fewer Americans have access to wireless broadband, it's because more are moving to a wireless-only model. The bureaucracy of government has trouble adapting to changes like these, which is why government-owned broadband systems are often technologically out of date before they're finished.

In other cities with government-owned networks, it's not just electric ratepayers who are on hook if things turn sour. One multi-city government network in Utah has attempted to raise property taxes to cover losses. Other cities have taken from general revenue funds to cover losses. Those shifts mean fewer dollars for education, public safety and local services.

Improving broadband access for underserved populations in our state is a great goal, but good intentions don't always make for sound legislation. As Gov. Bill Haslam has said, the question is not whether all Tennesseans should have access to broadband (of course they should), it's how are we going to get it to them.

We certainly shouldn't do it by hurting competition in our state and putting vital services at risk. Government should not use taxpayer money to compete with private industry in the high-speed Internet business.

Raul Lopez is the founder and executive director for Latinos for Tennessee, a local nonprofit dedicated to providing Latinos in Tennessee with information and resources grounded on faith, family and freedom.