PIERRE, S.D. (WNAX) – In her budget address in December, South Dakota Governor Kristi Noem asked the legislature to set aside $100 million over the next few years to expand broadband services across the state.

Greg Dean, with the South Dakota Telecommunications Association, says it’s more than just making sure everyone has access to broadband.

Dean says future uses of the internet will demand a much bigger pipeline.

Dean says much of the money will be directed at hardware.

Dean says broadband is now defined as 25 meg download and three meg upload. He says gigabit speeds will be minimums in the next few years.