Senator Blunt discusses problems with broadband access in Columbia and Missouri

COLUMBIA, Mo. (KMIZ)

Senator Roy Blunt was in Columbia Wednesday afternoon to talk about broadband access.

Local officials talked with Blunt about some problem areas where people don't have access to high-speed internet.

Some of those areas even included downtown Columbia.

Columbia Mayor Brian Treece spoke with Senator Blunt about the role the government plays in extending access to broadband.

"In our state, went from 50 percent of Missourians not having access to broadband to about half of that number. Then it's time, then we begin to have more of a discussion about what if broadband goes by your house and you really need it, but you can't afford it, and I think what the pandemic has done is elevated the idea that this is not a luxury for in many cases, it is an essential connection," said Senator Blunt.