Monthly Archives: February 2018

Blandin Robust Network Feasibility Fund grants – deadline March 16

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Learn more at the Blandin Foundation website…

Since 2007, the Robust Network Feasibility Fund has provided matching grants to communities to support the cost of research of the feasibility of geographically based broadband networks.

The words “feasibility study” mean different things to different people and can refer to technical, financial, organizational or political components of a proposed development. A feasibility study can also refer to different stages of a project, where preliminary, intermediate or final business plan stages include different levels of research and detail. The Blandin Foundation’s Robust Network Feasibility Fund acknowledges that communities are at different stages of development when they apply for support and consider proposals at any stage and for any component(s) as long as:

  1. The community or region identifies which stages and components are being proposed.
  2. Any earlier stages not yet completed are included in the proposed activities.
  3. Studies completed by the community for earlier stages are included with the application.

The next grant application deadline is March 16, 2018. Subsequent quarterly grant application deadlines for 2018 will be announced.

Baller, Stokes & Lide annual Federal Compliance Support Edition

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It’s so nice of the folks at Baller, Stokes & Lide to share their firm’s memoranda on

Jim Baller and the rest of the crew over there know at least as much as anyone about compliance changes – hopefully this will help keep you in the know. Another great way to keep in the know is to subscribe to their daily new email newsletter on broadband-related headlines.

February 15 (and livestreaming) Next Century Cities and Rep Anna Eshoo Host Congressional Briefing on Local Voices in Broadband Decisions

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Delighted to see that this event will be livestreamed…

Next Century Cities and Congresswoman Anna Eshoo (D-CA) to Host Congressional Briefing on Local Voices in Broadband Decisions

 

Washington, DC — Next Century Cities and Congresswoman Anna Eshoo will host a briefing on the importance of having local voices in broadband decision-making at 3:00pm ET this Thursday, February 15, 2018 at the Cannon House Office Building, Room 122.

 

The briefing will feature a panel of local elected officials to highlight creative local solutions from their own communities and the importance of local input and decision-making on issues currently being debated at the Federal Communications Commission and in Congress, including broadband infrastructure development, 5G deployment, and rural broadband access.

 

The event will be livestreamed at this link.

 

What:

Congressional Briefing: Local Voices in Broadband Decision-Making

 

Who:

 

  • Mayor Wade Troxell, Fort Collins, Colorado
  • Robert Wack, City Council President, Westminster, Maryland
  • Jeremy Pietzold, City Council President & Sandynet Chair, Sandy, Oregon
  • Greg Murphy, Supervisor Chair & Power Board Chair, Faxon Township, Minnesota
  • Patrick Mulhearn, Policy Analyst, Santa Cruz County, California
  • Deb Socia, Executive Director, Next Century Cities

 

When:

3:00-4:00pm ET

Thursday, February 15, 2018

 

Where:

122 Cannon House Office Building

27 Independence Ave, SE
Washington, DC 20003

Livestream available here.

 

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Next Century Cities is a nonprofit membership organization of 184 communities, founded to support mayors and elected leaders as they seek to ensure that all have access to fast, affordable, and reliable internet. For more information, visit www.nextcenturycities.org.

Digital literacy and older Adults Webinar: Feb 22

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Pleas join the Blandin Foundation for the upcoming webinar…

Digital literacy and older Adults: Best practices, recommendations, and future directions in the face of a digitally mediated world

Feb 22 from noon-1pm. Register online

In this webinar, participants will be introduced to OATS & Senior Planet programs, methodology, and the technologies best suited for digital literacy instruction among older learners. Additional topics will cover the impacts of ageism and technology acceptance among older adults, creating social learning environments poised for successful tech adoption, and the implications for deploying digital literacy training in myriad settings.  Finally, participants will be presented with opportunities to discuss replications of OATS programs in their respective catchment areas.

Presenter:

Alexander Glazebrook, MSW
Director of Training & Technology
Older Adults Technology Services (OATS)
Senior Planet
aglazebrook@oats.org
917 620 9460 cell
168 7th Street, Suite 3A
Brooklyn, New York 11215
www.oats.org  |  www.seniorplanet.org

Reaping the benefits of broadband: Statistics on Telemedicine

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I ran across a fun article – 29 Statistics You Need To Know About Healthcare & Telemedicine. It comes from a telehealth provider – I want to recognize that – but I thought at least some of the 29 statistics were worth sharing…

  1. Right-Sizing Care: Over the next decade, the aging American population is expected to place increased demands on the U.S. healthcare system. For older Americans, a review of medical records, found that 38% of doctor visits, including 27% of Emergency Room (E.R.) visits could have been replaced with telemedicine.
  2. Potential Annual Employer Savings: In a 2014 study, Towers Watson concluded that telehealth had the potential to generate $6 billion in annual healthcare cost savings for US. employers.
  3. High Patient Satisfaction: A 2016 survey funded by the NIH (which analyzed responses from 3,000 patients treated at via telehealth a CVS Minute Clinic) concluded that between 94 percent and 99 percent were “very satisfied” with telehealth, while one-third of respondents preferred the telehealth experience to an in-office doctor visit.
  4. Equivalent Quality of Care: According to the American Telemedicine Association, “Studies have consistently shown that the quality of healthcare services delivered via telemedicine are as good those given in traditional in-person consultations.”
  5. Average Consult Wait Time: The average wait time for a call-back for First Stop Health virtual consultation is less than five minutes.
  6. Health Care Savings and ROI:  With an average usage rate of 50%, First Stop Health saves a typical employer, with 1000 employees, $95,388 by redirecting care to appropriate lower-cost alternatives; which yields an average ROI of 60%.  These savings do not include any estimates for the value of avoided follow-up visits, increased employee productivity, reduced claims experience or intangible employee benefits, like improved health through earlier treatments and reduced stress.

Applications are Open for MHTA’s 2018 Scholarship!

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News from the MHTA that I thought folks could use…

Applications will remain open until April 1. Scholarships are offered to help Minnesota undergraduate students in science, technology, engineering and math (STEM) disciplines work toward their degrees. These awards range from $2,500 – $5,000 and can include internship opportunities at MHTA member companies.
LEARN MORE AND APPLY 

Good luck – it would be nice to see the opportunities spread throughout Minnesota!

Commerce Secretary Appoints FirstNet Board Members – including Hennepin County Sheriff

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According to the press release…

Today, U.S. Secretary of Commerce Wilbur Ross announced the appointment of four individuals to serve on the Board of the First Responder Network Authority, including three new members. The following are statements on today’s announcement from the FirstNet Board Chair Sue Swenson and the four appointees.

One appointee hails from Minnesota…

Richard W. Stanek, Sheriff, Hennepin County, MN: “I am extremely honored to be re-appointed to the Board. With the first-ever public safety network going live across the country, I am excited about the opportunities that lie ahead to transform public safety communications and help first responders do their jobs safely and more effectively.”

Klobuchar introduces Streamlining and Investing in Broadband Infrastructure Act

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CED reports on movement for a Dig Once bill…

Newly introduced legislation in the U.S. Senate would require broadband infrastructure conduits to be built alongside certain federal highway projects.

Proponents argue the policy, known as “dig once,” would bolster high-speed broadband access, particularly in rural and underserved areas. …

Daines introduced the Streamlining and Investing in Broadband Infrastructure Act along with fellow Republican Cory Gardner of Colorado and Democratic Sens. Kirsten Gillibrand of New York and Amy Klobuchar of Minnesota.

The measure would also establish a “standard fee” to facilitate broadband infrastructure siting. The fee would cover leasing agreements for telecommunications projects or grant a real property interest to states, wireless carriers or other parties hoping to build on federal property.

MN Broadband Task Force Meeting notes: superbowl technology and talk about lowering definition of broadband

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The Task Force learned about the ins and outs of the communication technology around the Superbowl. They also heard from a fixed wireless provider. It led to some interesting discussions about the definition of broadband. The fixed wireless provider thought that 25/3 (which is the state goal for broadband by 2022) was too steep a climb because he had customers that were satisfied with lower speeds. That led to other people discussing the definition.

It was an interesting juxtaposition to hear about the huge investments, the 7.2 terabytes of data transferred, and awesome speeds experienced downtown Minneapolis during the Superbowl and the push to lower the definition of broadband in rural areas so that we could get people lower speeds more quickly. Some folks seemed to recognize that would lead to tiered services based on location. And having spent time in the field recently, I have heard folks in rural areas say they want faster speeds because they want to run businesses, do homework and access telehealth options. That is why the Task Force recommended and the legislature put into place state speed goals of 25/3 by 2022 and 100/20 by 2026.

The Task Force also talked about plans for the final report, considering the role of a future Task Force and how to capture the attention of legislators.

Notes from the day: Continue reading →

Ignite Minnesota” Initiative Launches to Advance New Technologies for Rural America

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I wanted to share the fun news and invitation from Red Wing Ignite…

The pace of digital innovation accelerates with each passing year. In order to keep rural America on the front edge of the wave, a new initiative called “Ignite Minnesota” will be unveiled at a public celebration at the Red Wing Ignite Building on February 27.

The event will feature video messages from Minnesota Senators Amy Klobuchar and Tina Smith, alongside speakers and panel discussions from Minnesota’s business and educational communities. The event runs from 4:00 – 7:00 p.m., and the complete agenda is available at www.redwingignite.org.

“Ignite Minnesota is intended to help keep rural areas competitive by serving as the connecting point for people, ideas and resources,” said Neela Mollgard, Executive Director of Red Wing Ignite and Community Leader for this new statewide initiative. “The promise is for new technologies to be created that benefit agriculture, advanced manufacturing, education, healthcare and other industries that are central to rural America.”

Ignite Minnesota is possible thanks in part to a grant from the National Science Foundation and US Ignite. It will be administered by Red Wing Ignite, a regional organization that recently became the first rural area in America to receive the designation as a Smart Gigabit Community (SGC) by its partner organization, US Ignite. It is also the only SGC that is specifically tasked to addresses the needs of agriculture technology.

According to US Ignite, it is essential for rural communities to be connected to other cities so they will benefit equally in the rapidly changing digital space. Access to a national network is critical in developing, launching and scaling new applications.

The SGC program provides the infrastructure that allows Ignite Minnesota to a be a “tech hub” for greater Minnesota and serve students, entrepreneurs and businesses.

 

Grants to be awarded

Ignite Minnesota has made a commitment to develop technology solutions to issues faced by its community. To help accomplish this, it has made grant funds available to developers with promising new technologies.

The funding award is up to $10,000 per startup for the development of applications that require advanced gigabit networks.

Entrepreneurs, developers and startups interested in submitting a proposal should complete the Application Development Awards Proposal Template. Applications must be submitted through Red Wing Ignite, the designated hub for Minnesota. The deadline to submit a grant application is Feb. 16th, 2018.

Stearns County asks policymakers to add broadband to their to do list

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KNSI radio reports…

With the Minnesota State Legislature reconvening in just a few weeks, Stearns County officials met with state lawmakers to discuss topics the county would like to see addressed in the upcoming session.

Stearns County says the following issues are critical to County government in 2018.

Broadband made the list…

  • Continue to fund grants to improve broadband in rural Minnesota. Internet access and reliability are key to economic growth and development in rural areas.

Congressional candidate Leah Phifer promotes federal funding for broadband

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The Story Exchange is featuring women running for office, such as Leah Phifer, who is running for Congress in the 8th District. She recently released an economic development plan, which includes greater federal funding for broadband…

Phifer proposes to give small businesses a hand up by pushing federal agencies to consider the effects of regulations, increasing access to business loans and stepping up federal funding for improved broadband connections in rural areas.

More than a quarter of households in rural Minnesota lack access to broadband that meets state speed targets, and demand for fast connections outpaces available funding, according to a January report by Governor Mark Dayton’s Task Force on Broadband.

Phifer argues that high-speed internet access is a necessity for the district to be competitive in today’s marketplace. Without this access, businesses struggle to sell their products online and can’t complete debit and credit card transactions efficiently.

Her plan calls for adding $1 billion a year to the FCC’s Connect America Fund to pay for the extension and improvement of broadband lines across rural America. “This additional funding will help ensure all Americans have access to quality high speed broadband service within four years of enactment,” she said in a statement.

It’s nice to see an interest in greater spending on broadband. It would also be nice to see federal funding increase their upgrade speed requirements to align with state goal of 25 Mbps down and 3 up by 2022 and 100/20 by 2026.

Broadband comes up briefly in DFL Minnesota Gubernatorial discussion

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MPR reports on a recent discussion among DFL candidates for governor. The hot topics were mining and the Vikings stadium, but broadband came up…

Rep. Erin Murphy of St. Paul said the national attention Minnesota received for hosting Super Bowl LII Sunday was a “beautiful thing.” But she voted against the legislation that built U.S. Bank Stadium and still believes the public cost was too high.

“There are communities that are still waiting for things like broadband and affordable childcare and affordable and accessible health care. The human needs for me come first and they always will as the state’s governor,” Murphy said.

Headwaters RDC Regional Roundtable on Broadband – land of haves and have-nots

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Continuing the regional tour of broadband discussion with Bill Coleman, today we talked in Bemidji with folks in the Headwaters Regional Development Commission area. There were 20 some people in the room including Representative Steve Green, Representative Matt Bliss and Andy Martin from Senator Klobuchar’s office.

The area is an extreme case of haves and have-nots. Many areas have FTTH; some lack adequate cell coverage. For those who have it access to broadband is like breathing air, those who don’t have it are struggling. There is frustration with some large a national incumbents and happiness with local providers. Community members wanted to know how to either engage disinterested providers or enticed engaged providers; providers stressed the importance of public funding through Universal Service Funds (federally) and the Minnesota State grants.

You can see the presentation, video archive and my notes below.

Introductions from attendees – what’s your broadband story Continue reading →

East Central RDC Regional Roundtable on Broadband – great conversation on great need

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I’m on the road this week with Bill Coleman talking to regions about broadband. We started last night with East Central RDC. My first lesson? I’ve heard people say that broadband is losing headlines with legislators and that it feels like old news. Well it’s not old news on the front lines! There were 60+ attendees to a meeting that started at 7 pm. (And eventually the custodians had to kick us out!) Attendees included Representative Jason Rarick, Senator Tony Lourey, Senator Mark Koran, Representatives from Senator Klobuchar, Congressman Nolan and Senator Smith.

People are there because they recognize that if they don’t get better broadband their community is in jeopardy. The counties in the region are at various stages of seeking better broadband – as someone said, they no longer need to discuss why broadband – it’s how. People spoke up about the need for continued funding for broadband projects, the need to transform federal funding and a new look at the role of cooperatives.

We got to hear real numbers from real feasibility studies (88 percent of residents in Isanti County want better broadband) real costs (the business in Kanabec County was quoted $35,000 per mile to upgrade to fiber) and real stories (the business that loses $35,000 per minute when an employee loses connectivity). You can see the presentation, video archive and my notes below. (I apologize for the coughing in the video – bought some cough drops for today’s meeting!)

Notes – (sorry didn’t do much clean up, you can cross check with video) Continue reading →