The Minnesota Senate Republican Caucus reports…

During the upcoming special session, the Minnesota Senate is set to approve the final comprehensive agriculture, rural development, and affordable housing budget bill championed by Senate Republicans. The budget legislation places an emphasis on rural broadband expansion, invests in affordable manufactured housing and home ownership, prioritizes value-added agriculture opportunities that directly impact farmers, and increases resources for farmer mental health services.

About broadband they say…

Further, the bill funds the Minnesota Border-to-Border Rural Broadband expansion program at $40 million over the next two years million, a significant increase in the legislature’s appropriation over the last biennium.

“From health care, to education, to small businesses, broadband access is essential to our way of life in the twenty-first century,” added Westrom. “Communities that lack access to broadband cannot flourish. This significant investment addresses this issue head-on.”

It is nice to see the broadband grants get funded. It’s an important investment in rural Minnesota. All of the policymakers were supportive of the investment. The House and Governor proposed $70 million; the Senate proposed $30 million. It’s good to see a compromise.