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MCN employee selected for FCC Task Force

March 16, 2020

For Immediate Release
March 16, 2020
Media Contact: Elizabeth (Liz) Gray
O: (918) 549-2453
C: (918) 758-8106
rtenl@zhfpbtrrangvba.pbz

Muscogee (Creek) Nation employee selected for FCC Task Force

Task Force Working Groups to help develop precision agriculture in unserved areas

OKMULGEE, Oklahoma — The Federal Communications Commission selected Muscogee (Creek) Nation Division of Agriculture & Natural Resources Director Trenton Kissee as a working group member of the Task Force for Reviewing the Connectivity and Technology Needs of Precision Agriculture in the United States.

The task force was established through the Precision Ag Connectivity Task Force in the Agricultural Improvement Act of 2018 in order to provide advice and recommendations for the FCC on how to assess and advance deployment of broadband Internet access service on unserved agricultural land to promote precision agriculture.

Precision agriculture uses new technologies to increase crop yields and profitability while lowering the levels of traditional inputs needed to grow crops, such as land, water, fertilizer, herbicides and insecticides.

The groups will assist the task force in carrying out its work with mapping and analyzing connectivity on agricultural lands, examining current and future connectivity demand for precision agriculture, encouraging adoption of precision agriculture and availability of high-quality jobs on connected farms, and accelerating broadband deployment on unserved agricultural lands.

Kissee is a member of the group addressing availability of high-quality jobs on connected farms.

He said his role will focus on developing education programs for rural areas without prior broadband access to effectively utilize the technology once it is available.

“I am looking forward to communicating the perspectives and opportunities of MCN, citizens of this and other tribal nations and the agriculture community to the USDA as part of this task force working group,” Kissee said. “Indian Country is poised to benefit greatly from the increased access to broadband and other technology thanks to our education programs, adaptable spirit and our willingness to collaborate.”

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