Morrison County
| Year | 100/20 Mbps | 1 Gbps |
|---|---|---|
| 2025 | #47 – 87.02% | #41 – 62.6% |
| 2024 | #49 – 84.91% | |
| 2023 | #48 – 82.53% | |
| 2022 | #51 – 77.57% | |
| 2021 | #56 – 73.96% | |
| 2020 | #56 – 70.03% | |
| 2019 | #53 – 69.94% | |
| 2018 | #59 – 42.74% | |
| 2017 | #66 – 28.83% |
Red dots represent unserved locations.
Morrison County: steady progress but BEAD funding is not likely to help
Morrison County has had incremental broadband expansion in the last few years, which is why they retain their Yellow status. They been actively engaged in seeking better broadband for several years, including as part of the Resilient Region as a Blandin Broadband Community. They are making slow progress. Unfortunately, it seems that BEAD is funding primarily satellite connections, which doesn’t help meet state goals.
At the time of writing, the MN BEAD final proposal has not been approved, but the current proposal would mean coverage for 687 locations in Morrison County. Some locations will qualify for fiber, but the majority will get a satellite or fixed wireless connection, which does not qualify as served in the MN statute.
There is still Line Extension funding yet to be distributed, which helps connect handfuls of houses just beyond existing infrastructure. (Morrison has benefitted from earlier Line Extension awards. So that seems hopeful for them as well.)
Statewide, there have been changes with local and national broadband providers, which also leads to uncertainty.
Household Density
12.9
Number of Providers
15
As of 2025 · Source: MN DEED
Households with Device Access
statewide
statewide
statewide
statewide
statewide
Has Worked with Blandin Foundation
Yes
Has Received MN Grant(s)
Yes
2014 – Consolidated Telephone Cooperative, Region 5 Virtual Highway Project – Amount $2 million
2016 – BENTON COOPERATIVE TELEPHONE COMPANY BUCKMAN – GRANT: $276,230
2017 – Benton Cooperative Telephone Company – Rice Ramey – GRANT $765,015
2019 – CTC (Consolidated Telephone Company) – Fort Ripley/Executive Acres Project – GRANT $830,587
2019 – Benton Cooperative Telephone Company – Ramey Phase I – GRANT $936,759
MN State Grants awarded in 2021: Benton Cooperative Telephone Company – Ramey Phase 2 Project – GRANT $338,011 This last mile project will serve 119 unserved locations in the Ramey telephone exchange located in portions of Lakin and Mount Morris townships in Morrison County and a small portion of Dailey and Page townships located in Mille Lacs County.
Sytek Communications – Morrison/Todd/Stearns County FTTP Project – GRANT $1,048,668 This last mile project will bring service to 130 locations in Southwest Morrison, Southeastern Todd and Northeastern Stearns counties.
2022 – Morrison County will benefit from a ReConnect grant through Upsala Cooperative.
2024:
- County: Morrison
Benton Cooperative Telephone Company Buckman Township
Grant: $1,248,430
Local Match: $2,318,518
Total Budget: $3,566,948
The Benton Cooperative Telephone Company project will provide high-speed Broadband services to Buckman Township in Morrison County. Benton Cooperative Telephone Company currently provides high-speed Broadband to 5,850 customers of which 5,414 are served by fiber allowing them to have speeds of a minimum of 100/100 and a maximum of 1Gig/1Gig. This project will serve a total of 241 locations, including 190 unserved and 51 underserved locations. - County: Morrison
Upsala Coop Tel Assoc dba Sytek
Sytek Swanville North Moose Lake
Grant: $3,689,967
Local Match: $1,229,989
Total Budget: $4,919,956
Government Districts
U.S. Congress: CD 7
MN Senate: 05, 10
MN House: 05B, 10A, 10B