Representative Tom Emmer had an editorial in the recent St Cloud Times – supporting better broadband for unserved areas…

As elected officials, we have been working on the state and federal levels to make sure your tax dollars are being used as effectively as possible when it comes to broadband. Minnesota is leveraging federal funding, state grants and private investment to expand broadband access. As a result, we will see historic funding levels the next several years.

At the state level, we must focus on unserved areas, which are the most difficult to reach but deserve access to telemedicine and educational resources. Reforms that level the playing field and open the market to competition will drive down prices and offer more choices.

At the federal level, allowing the Federal Highway Administration to install broadband fiber when laying down highway would reduce the cost of broadband construction by up to 90 percent.