Service Delivery
DEED provides direct service to its customers via staff located throughout the state. It also leverages its resources by contracting with vendors or partners to deliver services that help DEED achieve its mandate. And, to incent innovation, DEED awards grants to qualified entities to deliver service in a new way or resolve unmet needs.
Specialists market Minnesota to attract new business and help develop existing or startup businesses. Community development staff address revitalization issues and prepare for economic development opportunities.
There are nearly 50 CareerForce locations where people looking for jobs can find employment and career assistance. An online job bank - MinnesotaWorks.net - connects job seekers and employers. Unemployment insurance benefits are available for people who have lost their jobs through no fault of their own. And, DEED's labor market information helps all customers make educated decisions about their futures.
History
DEED was created in July 2003 with the merger of the former Minnesota Department of Trade and Economic Development (DTED) and the Minnesota Department of Economic Security (MDES).
MDES History
The agency was originally created in 1977 as a merger of the former Departments of Employment Services and Vocational Rehabilitation, the Governor's Manpower Office, and the Economic Opportunity Office, which administered anti-poverty programs. In 1985, State Services for the Blind joined the department, which was renamed the Department of Jobs and Training.
The original name, Minnesota Department of Economic Security, was restored in 1994 by the legislature since it fully reflected the role, mission, and responsibility of the agency.
DTED History
Minnesota's first economic development agency—the Department of Business Research and Development—was created in 1947 and also has undergone several legislative reorganizations. Its name changes include the Department of Business Development in 1953 and the Department of Economic Development in 1967.
A 1981 legislative restructuring included the addition of many community development and energy development programs and it became the Department of Energy, Planning and Development. In 1983, yet another reorganization led to the creation of the Department of Energy and Economic Development.
The agency became known as the Department of Trade and Economic Development in 1987, when the state's international trade activities were returned to the agency's purview and energy programs were transferred to the Department of Public Service. In 2000, legislative action led to the transfer of the Dislocated Worker Programs from MDES to the Minnesota Job Skills Partnership Board unit within DTED.
