Lawmakers set up potential sale of the ICN

The Legislature also voted to set plans in motion which could lead to the sale of the state-owned telecommunications network known as the I-C-N. Representative Willard Jenkins, a Republican from Waterloo, says the state hasn’t been able to run the network like a business.But a sale is a long-shot. Senator Jeff Lamberti, a Republican from Ankeny, says the state’s plowed about half a billion dollars into the network already, and the price has to be right.Lamberti says he’s not interested in letting some company come in and “steal” the fiber optic network. The network was envisioned as a way to get high-speed fiber optic connections across the state. The I-C-N was spawned in a late-night deal and few legislators knew they had voted to create it, and this plan which could lead to the network’s sale was approved by lawmakers in the waning hours of the 2003 Legislative session.