The La Crosse Tribune posts a view from someone organizing the digital equity plan from the very local perspective…

To make sure that this money is spent on the communities that need it the most, the Minnesota Department of Economic Expansion has set up digital connection committees to receive input from the most impacted communities. I organized a committee in southern Winona County.

The group discussed the burden of living without internet in our digital world. The lack of rural broadband creates significant hurdles to new farmers and new businesses. Rural residents are unable to take remote work jobs that they are qualified for. And the lack of broadband can decrease the property value for rural homes as this has now become an essential service for home buyers. In many cases, farms without cell service rely on spotty satellite internet, which puts them at greater risk of being unable to connect to emergency services during periods of low bandwidth — storms, power outages and cloudy days.

Access to broadband is the same struggle that rural communities faced during the 1930s to electrify the countryside. I believe that broadband is the electricity of our generation. Greater Minnesota will not have the full economic and social participation it deserves until every home has access to broadband internet. Our local governments and internet service providers must prioritize providing this essential service to every home and farm.