Chairwoman Rosenworcel Announces Members, First Meeting of Precision Ag Task Force

Federal Communications Commission Chairwoman Jessica Rosenworcel, in consultation with Secretary of Agriculture Tom Vilsack, has appointed members to serve on the re-chartered Task Force for Reviewing the Connectivity and Technology Needs of Precision Agriculture in the United States. In its second term, the Task Force will continue its work to provide advice and recommendations to the FCC on accelerating the deployment of broadband Internet access service on unserved agricultural land to promote precision agriculture. The Task Force's work will include: (1) Mapping and Analyzing Connectivity on Agricultural Lands; (2) Examining Current and Future Connectivity Demand for Precision Agriculture; (3) Encouraging Adoption of Precision Agriculture and Availability of High-Quality Jobs on Connected Farms; (4) Accelerating Broadband Deployment on Unserved Agricultural Lands. Chairwoman Rosenworcel has designated Teddy Bekele, Land O’Lakes Senior Vice President and Chief Technology Officer, to serve a second term as Chair of the Task Force, and Dr. Michael Adelaine, CIO & Special Advisor to the President, South Dakota State University, to serve as Vice Chair.

The Task Force will hold its first meeting on Thursday, January 13, 2022, beginning at 10:00 am EST. The primary agenda of the Task Force’s first meeting will be to introduce members of the Task Force, describe the focus of each working group, review the policies relevant to the Task Force’s duties, and begin discussing strategies to advance broadband deployment on agricultural land and promote precision agriculture. This agenda may be modified at the discretion of the Task Force Chair and the Designated Federal Officer.