Verizon has traditionally used the lure of utopian broadband deployment to nudge state lawmakers into changing laws they don't like. In 2004, Verizon told New Jersey they might not see any Fios deployment after the state Board of Public Utilities ruled that Verizon could only "moderately increase" the wholesale rates the bell charges competitors to lease their lines.

"it is difficult to make a case to the corporation to invest here given the regulatory environment," Verizon warned at the time. That environment quickly became more friendly thanks to millions in Verizon lobbying expenditures in the state. Those lobbying efforts greatly greased the passage of new statewide franchise agreement legislation, the wisdom of which was recently debated by our readers.

The only problem is that the bill remains unsigned on New Jersey Governor Jon Corzine's desk, stalling Verizon's TV push, according to the local Courier Post On-line. The Governor's office has given no timeline on signing the agreement; Corzine says he's reviewing it "very carefully." Verizon has 92 local franchise applications filed in towns across New Jersey, but has held off working on more as the new law sits in limbo.