> So, because of these stupid accounting rules, you have to buy Internet from someone else who is then paying UTOPIA for last-mile access, which makes it very difficult for UTOPIA to actually break even on their build-out

Washington state just makes the customers pay the costs for build-out. Then the municipal utility district always breaks even. You can finance it through a utility lien, but either way, build out is expensive; less so if someone else already paid to get fiber to pass your lot, but still pretty spendy.