A few years ago, the Oklahoma town of Tuttle suddenly found itself without cable or internet service after a local broadband provider went bankrupt, leaving behind unpaid bills to the power company. “Tuttle, we believe, became the largest city in America without cable service or internet service,” said Tim Young, the town’s city manager. Like the majority of cities in the U.S., Tuttle residents accessed broadband through private companies rather than through a city-run system.