I am in Scotland this month so I wasn’t able to attend the Task Force meeting yesterday in Lake Lena. I am hoping to get a recording of the meeting and will try to post my usual notes once I get that – but I suspect that won’t be until next week. In the meantime, my friend Bill Coleman has sent me some notes to share. Bill’s notes aren’t as detailed as mine usually are but he is great about pulling out the most salient points…

The task force was welcomed by Joseph Nayquonabe, Commissioner of Corporate Affairs.

Roxy Traxler spoke about the East Central Broadband Initiative Five county broadband initiative – Pine, Kanabec, Mille Lacs, Fond du Lac, Mille Lacs Band, Carleton County, Aitikin County

People need broadband!  Mille Lacs County job application portal does not work for many residents because of no connectivity.  Spouses cannot Skype with loved ones deployed to foreign lands.

50 – 75% of this region’s population lives outside of communities.  Communities have broadband; most rural residents do not.

Topography deters wireless.

East Central Region is generally lower income, lower educated region.  We need broadband to improve our access to jobs and education and health care.

Slower access speeds are insufficient to access advanced applications.

East central region is working on this…

• four Blandin Foundation BBC communities
• Continuing presentations to local governments, (county, city and townships), chambers of commerce and others to increase awareness.
• trying to work with providers to identify deployment barriers and develop partnership possibilities.
• East central regional Broadband Summit

Panel Discussion

Wayne Gilman of Pine City Schools

Being unconnected means lack of access – broadband, content, interaction

Schools are emerging from being fixed in place and time – it is now 24 x7 available.  School is emerging as the place for testing and increasing understanding rather than information is gathering.

Broadband is now required for everyone – an essential public utility.  There is a market failure that private industry has not yet been able to overcome.  There is a public interest in making this happen – we need to find a way.

Steve Hallan – Pine County Commissioner, former ECMMEC Made extraordinary efforts to get broadband extended to his home.  His neighbors are not so lucky.  Rural people need broadband – accessing the John Deere web site is an essential activity for rural people.  People who are connected use broadband in a myriad of ways, everyday!  Some for fun and convenience, others are increasingly required for daily life.

Pine City is a commuter town – with broadband, many of these people could be telecommuting.  Many already do, but a good number are precluded from telecommuting by the lack of broadband.

Infrastructure serves local government and schools, leaves out residents.  Students at Pine Tech have to hang out at the school to take online classes.   Also terrible wireless service outside of the I-35 corridor.  County staff are frustrated by this lack of mobile connectivity.

County has 700 miles of roads, 700 miles of township roads, 200 miles of city roads.  We have a mechanism for funding these roads, no matter where you live, you have an adequate road.  Rural people do not pay more gas tax than city dwellers.  Why if we can develop this system, can we not find a way to fund rural broadband.

Doyle Jelsing, People’s National Bank of Mora.

Bank developed internet based product to reward online bank customers.  Only people within 2.5 miles of CL central office can access this system.  Customers end up angry at the Bank!

Mora is served, but the majority of the county residents are rural.  The Kanabec Broadband Initiative has opened his eyes to the depth of the problem.  4H is now broadband dependent to deliver online courses, reference materials, etc.  Doyle’s son seeking info from MES totally frustrated with lack of connectivity.

Job training/retraining is now delivered via webinars and online training.

FirstLight Health was denied a home telehealth grant because of grant reviewer concerns that most rural people would not be able to connect.  New Allina manager says that remote monitoring and broadband will be essential to controlling health care costs.  No broadband – no health care monitoring!

As Doyle’s awareness has grown, he now recognizes that lack of broadband will increasingly negatively impact quality of life.  And economic development.  And job access.

Lack of broadband increases loss of talent – people expect it, young people want it.  What is the economic cost of the lack broadband???  BIG!!

For the young, for the unemployed, for the sick who cannot connect?  Again, the tie to the essential utility service.

Access and affordability go together.  High costs are just as powerful as lack of access.

MAK – the east central region has done the best presentation of any at a task force meeting.  She will be bringing this team to the Capitol so that legislators can hear their story.  She appreciates the spirit of collaboration between counties and tribes; she appreciates the recognition of the possibilities of public private partnerships.

 

Maureen Ideker reflected on the importance of home telehealth as a key tool in working with older people and avoiding long term care costs.  THe other driver is the personal health record (PHR).  These two items are converging!

Al Hemming, Mille Lacs Band member

District 3 Lake Lena resident from a bit west of Hinckley.

Al would like to hear more of the proposed strategies that the task force is planning on pursuing.  MAK talked about the reports and the work group activities.  MAK – lack of adoption is a statewide problem that inhibits public policy development.  Al replied that younger tribal members are hungry for technology access

Sheldon from health care division regarding EHR.  Network redesign is happening to enable the use of EHR.  Also clinical care with x-rays and other images.  Health service is increasing its use of web technology so that people can see their own records.  Increased emphasis on serving mobile health workers.  And mobile phone application development.

David Minke – Pine County administrator.

Policy recommendations

#1 – focus on state broadband goal.    Say it out loud and pursue it.  10 – 20 Mb; MN Top Five in access and use; and top five internationally.

#2 – maximize the impact of the Office of the Broadband The task force needs to be the top supporter of the Office of Broadband and enable its partnerships.

#3 Recognize the power of the task force.

Policies are not solutions- they set the framework Educate, Educate, Educate.  Collaborate, collaborate, collaborate.

Educate – leaders do not understand much of broadband.

Promote, educate, own.

Push the envelope on collaboration between public sector and within the public sector.  Push the envelope on public-private collaboration.

Margaret Anderson Kelliher provided an update about the Office of Broadband within DEED.  The members of the Broadband sub-cabinet are creating the job description.  The chair invited members to provide input into the job description by forwarding suggestions to her within a week.  A likely timeline for hiring the Office of Broadband  director would be by September 1.

Before the task force broke into the work groups, the task force adjourned.