A report by the Kansas Reflector indicated U.S. Sen. Jerry Moran is not happy with the state’s performance of its existing broadband system. Kansas was ranked last on average internet download speed in a report by Broadbandnow Research.
At least Kansas was ranked 30 best overall out of the states. Oklahoma might have a faster internet download speed, but it was ranked 44th in the report. Missouri was ranked 46 and New Mexico came in at number 45. Texas was 16 and Arkansas was ranked 38.
As for download speed, Kansas was far behind Oklahoma, Missouri, Colorado and Nebraska.
Here is what the report found in its research.
- Availability of low-priced broadband remains low across the US. In half of all states, less than 20% of the population has access to a broadband plan for $60 per month or less, and Washington was the only state with over 50% of their population having access at 54%.
- The category with the largest geographic disparity in the country is latency (round trip time), with 18 states earning a score of 0 for that section.
- We support changing the definition of broadband from 25Mbps down and 3Mbps up to 100Mbps down and 25Mbps up, but we’re a long way away from widespread access to those speeds. Nationally, 100Mbps down is in the 62nd percentile and 25Mbps up is in the 69th percentile
Sen. Moran took action after the release of the report and wrote Gina Raimondo, secretary of the U.S. Commerce Department urging her to rely on accurate data in targeting federal funding for Kansas. Just as Oklahoma is in the process of finalizing maps for its use of federal funds to expand broadband service, Kansas is doing the same.
Sen. Moran says improvement to the Kansas system and giving Kansans access to high-quality broadband would benefit up a 1 million residents. He says they live without current access to the kind of digital connections important for personal business, education and health, reported the Kansas Reflector.