Rank: 21
Code: Green
(See Blandin Foundation interactive map)
Scott County: recent grant should help edge them clsoer
Scott County ranks 21 for broadband access and 3 for digital equity out of 87 counties. They have hovered from 88-92 percent coverage to broadband of 100 Mbps down and 20 up since we started tracking. They have 4351 households without access to broadband at that speed. Estimates indicate that it will cost $40.5 million to get to ubiquitous broadband in the county.
| County | Housing Unit Density | Number of Housing Units | 100/20 Mbps | houses unserved | Cost to close the gap |
| Scott | 148.3 | 54,658 | 92.04 | 4351 | $ 40,462,224.24 |
Scott County will benefit from border to border grants announced in December 2022:
- Nuvera Communications, Inc., $2,436,427.00
As part of the 7-county metro area, Scott County is a fairly metro county, so they have the advantage of proximity to the Twin Cities and some higher population density areas. Their digital equity ranking is high so residents are likely to demand better access when they need it. The are close to goal; improvement has been slow but steady. The newest grant will help get them closer and that’s why they retain their green code.
Broadband Access:
| 2022 | 2021 | 2020 | 2019 | 2018 | 2017 | |
| 100/20 (2026 goal) | 92.04 | 91.02 | 89.43 | 89.15 | 88.61 | 88.38 |
| 25/3 (2022 goal) | 94.11 | 93.26 | 97.13 | 96.43 | 94.5 | 96.1 |
Digital Equity:
Scott County ranks 3 out of 87 for digital equity. (See full Digital Equity Profile)
Scott County ranks 2 out of 87 for computer ownership. 98.3 percent of homes have a computer of device as compared to statewide ownership of 95.5 percent.
Past grants:
- 2017 – Jaguar Communications – Sand Creek Township Area Broadband Project – GRANT $192,405
- 2019: BEVCOMM (Eckles Telephone Company) – Le Sueur County Project – GRANT $1,857,376
- MN State Grant awarded in 2021: Nuvera Communications, Inc. – Webster Rural FTTP – GRANT $431,260 This last mile project will serve 103 unserved and 178 underserved locations in Wheatland and Webster townships in Rice County, Euraka and Greenvale townships in Dakota County, and New Market and Cedar Lake townships in Scott County.
Checklist:
- Find more articles on broadband in Scott County (http://tinyurl.com/gt4afcy)
- 100/20 Mbps ranking: 21 (up 1)
- Has worked with Blandin
- Has received a MN Broadband grant
- Household density: 148.3
I am doing the annual look at broadband in each county – based on maps from the Office of Broadband Development and news gathered from the last year. I’m looking at progress toward the 2022 (25 Mbps down and 3 Mbps up) and 2026 (100 Mbps down and 20 Mbps up) and will code each:
- Red (yikes)
- Yellow (warning)
- Green (good shape)
Blandin on Broadband 