Beshear issues executive order seeking to overhaul KentuckyWired board 

FRANKFORT, Ky. — Democratic Kentucky Gov. Andy Beshear has issued an executive order overhauling the board overseeing the state’s broadband network KentuckyWired, throwing another wrench into a contentious lawsuit the network is entangled in.

In his Wednesday order, Beshear cited a Kentucky Supreme Court decision in June as authority to invalidate a state law passed this year by the Republican-controlled state legislature that overhauled the leadership and board for the Kentucky Communications Network Authority, or KCNA. That June decision nullified legislative attempts to shift control of the Kentucky Fair Board from the governor to the agriculture commissioner.

That state law, House Bill 314, removed the majority of Beshear appointments from the board and replaced the majority of the board with appointments made by Republican state constitutional officers. Beshear’s order would revert the board to its previous makeup before the passage of HB 314. 

Republicans argued HB 314 was needed to provide better oversight over the network that’s been entangled in a lawsuit for years with the private company Accelecom, or Open Fiber Kentucky Company LLC, which it partnered with to manage the network. The ongoing contract disputes before Franklin Circuit Court Judge Phillip Shepherd include Accelecom seeking permission to connect certain customers to the middle mile network. 

Beshear issued the executive order ahead of a Thursday morning court hearing in Shepherd’s courtroom for the lawsuit between the state and Accelecom, the last scheduled hearing before a planned trial date in November. 

KCNA is the agency administering the network of hundreds of miles of fiber optic cable built across the state to provide high-speed internet connection to every county seat. 

That network serves as a “middle mile” of internet connection, and private companies then build a “last mile” of internet connection directly to homes and businesses. The network serves the school districts, court system, executive branch offices, public universities and community and technical colleges.

In a Wednesday afternoon email, one of the board members appointed after the passage of HB 314 pushed back on the authority of the executive order to remake the board. 

Russ Hensley wrote the Kentucky Supreme Court decision that Beshear relies on in his executive order does not allow for “replacing KCNA’s statutory Board by executive order.” 

“I do not accept that this executive order lawfully ends my service, and I reserve my objections to its validity,” Hensley wrote. 

Shepherd during the Thursday morning court hearing also questioned the authority of Beshear’s executive order.

“I know he’s a very good lawyer. And I think I also know that he realizes he can’t declare statutes unconstitutional,” Shepherd said about the order. 

He said he believed HB 314 still had “full force and effect.” 

“If the governor disputes that, he’s welcome to come in here and file a motion to intervene and to raise the arguments that he’s made,” Shepherd said. 

He also said it was his belief the ongoing lawsuit has hampered the ability of the KentuckyWired network to benefit Kentuckians. 

“It is not a fully operational program now, and the longer it stays in litigation, the more the public interest is going to suffer,” Shepherd said. 

This story will be updated.