MinnPost reports on the MN Office of Broadband Development’s conference, which I reported on Tuesday…

Minnesota established its Office of Broadband Development in 2014 under former Gov. Mark Dayton. Since then, a task force has focused on the issue and used grant programs like the Border-to-Border and Low Population Density grants to help fund projects.

Over the past decade, these grants helped nearly 112,000 homes and businesses receive access to broadband. Earlier this month, Gov. Tim Walz announced another round of funding for such projects — with $50 million in available grants.

De Wit said Minnesota set higher goals for broadband than the federal standard. In 2016, the state set a goal of all Minnesota businesses and homes having access to at least one broadband provider with download speeds of 100 megabits per second and upload speeds of at least 20 megabits per second by 2026.

They give an update on the status of broadband in Minnesota…

As of November, about 229,000, households lacked access to the internet speeds that the state set for its 2026 goal, according to a presentation the Office of Broadband Development gave to the Legislature in February.