From the Office of Broadband Development…
Broadband Matters: Office of Broadband Development Updates
- New session added! Webinar for U.S. Army Corps of Engineers Regulatory Program, July 8
- Broadband Task Force, June meeting plans
- OBD in the field
- Broadband, Equity, Access and Deployment (BEAD) updates
- Line Extension Connection Program updates
New session added! Webinar for U.S. Army Corps of Engineers Regulatory Program, July 8
Wednesday July 8 at 11 a.m. CT., a new session has been added for the Broadband Development Training Series: Navigating PLUS (Permitting, Land Use, and State Systems).
The session agenda will be posted on the OBD Webinars and Recorded Events webpage under the “Broadband Development Training series” toggle. No registration required and the Teams link to join the session will be included on the agenda.
The session will provide an overview of the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers (USACE) Regulatory Program as it relates to broadband infrastructure deployment under the Broadband Equity, Access and Deployment (BEAD) program in Minnesota.
Broadband Task Force, June meeting plans
The Broadband Task Force will meet on Thursday June 18 at 10 a.m. CT. This meeting will be held virtually and is open to anyone from the public to attend. The Teams link to join the meeting will be included at the top of the meeting agenda which has been posted along with other information on past meetings on the Broadband Task Force webpage.
OBD in the field
OBD staff have been busy performing site visits across the state for Broadband Grant Program Rounds 9 and 10, and the Line Extension Connection Program Round 4 to ensure infrastructure grant compliance.
Since March, the team has gone on site visits for 24 grantee projects with providers from:
Wiktel, Sytek, Bevcomm, Midco, Woodstock Telephone Company, Meeker Cooperative Light & Power, Arvig (upper photo: Byron Sagen, Construction Manager for Arvig’s Round 9 Border-to-Border Naytahwaush grant project), Spectrum, Gardonville Cooperative Telephone Association, East Central Energy (ECE), Albany Mutual Telephone Association (AMTA), Benton Cooperative Telephone Company, Mille Lacs Energy Cooperative (MLEC), Red River Communications (lower photo: Tom Steinolfson, General Manager and CEO of Red River Communications), Federated REA, Garden Valley Telephone Company (GVT), and CTC.
Broadband, Equity, Access and Deployment (BEAD) updates
Minnesota continues to advance the federal BEAD program forward with steady, thoughtful progress. Alongside ongoing pre-contracting work, including necessary scope adjustments, the state has launched a rebid round. All rebid-eligible locations are available for public viewing on the Minnesota BEAD map.
Updated guidance was released June 16 from the National Telecommunications and Information Administration (NTIA) and the updated FAQ Version 22 is available on NTIA’s webpage.
Additional information and resources will continued to be posted and updated on OBD BEAD’s webpage ensuring partners have ongoing access to the latest program developments.
Line Extension Connection Program updates
The bidding window for the fast-tracked Round 5 closed May 22, 2026 and submitted bids are under review and initial award offers are being sent.
Registration remains open for residents and businesses for future rounds of the program. For assistance completing the application or to request a paper form to complete, please call 651-259-7610 or email DEED.broadband@state.mn.us.
OBD expects to announce a sixth round of the program with standard timelines using state funds later in 2026.
More information and registration are available on the Line Extension Connection Program webpage.