Lafayette Republicans go 'Pro Fiber'!

It's official! Last night, the Lafayette Republican Parish Executive Committee adopted a resolution in support of the LUS fiber project. They did this after a couple of meetings worth of discussion, including the one last night.

Don Bertrand of committee forwarded Lafayette Pro Fiber a copy of the resolution. It makes a succinct and powerful endorsement of the project, putting it within the historic context of the city and within the ideological boundaries of free market Republicanism.

Here it is in its entirety:

State of Louisiana Parish of Lafayette

Resolution by the Republican Executive Committee of Lafayette Parish

• Whereas, Lafayette Utility System (LUS) was formed in 1897, as a municipally owned utility corporation, to offer utility services not provided by the private sector, and

• Whereas, LUS has meritoriously performed said services for the growth and economic vitality of Lafayette for more than a century, and

• Whereas, LUS is recognized as a leader in the utilities industry by the State of Louisiana and the Public Service Commission and the residents of the City of Lafayette, and;

• Whereas, we recognize fibre optic technology is classified as a utility, and

• Whereas, LUS would act in its legal capacity as a Municipally Owned Utility to provide “Fibre Optic Service To The Home” utilizing the existing “Fibre Optic Loop” currently in place, and

• Whereas, “Fibre Optic to the Home” provides further infrastructure development and expansion, for the continued economic success of Lafayette well into the new millennium, and

• Whereas, this initiative is designed to place Lafayette in a position of advantage as a technologically competitive community now and into distant the future, and

• Whereas, other utility providers will not offer the service of “Fibre Optics to the Home” in the near future, and

• Whereas, the service provided by the “Fibre Optic to The Home Initiative”, would provide opportunity for business growth and expansion, and

• Whereas, Lafayette competes globally, and is challenged by a world economy, and,

• Whereas, the United States of America currently has slipped in rank to 15th in the world as a nation of technology, and

• Whereas, this “Fibre Optic to the Home” deployment initiative would place Lafayette at the pinnacle of technological development, Lafayette being the largest city to date to pursue this initiative, and

• Whereas, this initiative will assist the University of Louisiana at Lafayette in its continued drive for excellence in new and exciting fields of computer technology research, development and curriculum, and

• Whereas, this community resource addresses long term solutions to closing any digital divide, and reaching all of the community, it’s schools and libraries, and

• Whereas, the “Fibre Optic to the Home” service would create the potential for new economic opportunity for Lafayette, and in our opinion far exceeding the financial risk,

• Whereas, we believe the LUS Plan represents an investment in infrastructure as opposed to direct competition between government and private business, which would violate a basic principle of Republican Philosophy,

• Be it Resolved this 10th day of March, 2005, the Lafayette Parish Republican Executive Committee (RPEC), endorses and supports the effort by the Lafayette Utility System to make “Fibre Optic to the Home” services a reality for the citizens, institutions of learning and business’ of the City of Lafayette and beyond as time and resources allow.

Resolution by the Republican Executive Committee of Lafayette Parish

To that, let me just add, "BRAVO!!!"