[Congressional Bills 115th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[S. 2343 Introduced in Senate (IS)]

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115th CONGRESS
  2d Session
                                S. 2343

 To require the Federal Communications Commission to establish a task 
 force for meeting the connectivity and technology needs of precision 
                   agriculture in the United States.


_______________________________________________________________________


                   IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES

                            January 25, 2018

  Mr. Wicker (for himself, Ms. Klobuchar, Mr. Daines, and Mr. Tester) 
introduced the following bill; which was read twice and referred to the 
           Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation

_______________________________________________________________________

                                 A BILL


 
 To require the Federal Communications Commission to establish a task 
 force for meeting the connectivity and technology needs of precision 
                   agriculture in the United States.

    Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the 
United States of America in Congress assembled,

SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.

    This Act may be cited as the ``Precision Agriculture Connectivity 
Act of 2018''.

SEC. 2. FINDINGS.

    Congress finds the following:
            (1) Precision agriculture technologies and practices allow 
        farmers to significantly increase crop yields, eliminate 
        overlap in operations, and reduce inputs such as seed, 
        fertilizer, pesticides, water, and fuel.
            (2) These technologies allow farmers to collect data in 
        real time about their fields, automate field management, and 
        maximize resources.
            (3) Studies estimate that precision agriculture 
        technologies can reduce agricultural operation costs by up to 
        25 dollars per acre and increase farm yields by up to 70 
        percent by 2050.
            (4) The critical cost savings and productivity benefits of 
        precision agriculture cannot be realized without the 
        availability of reliable broadband Internet access service 
        delivered to the cropland and ranchland of the United States.
            (5) The deployment of broadband Internet access service to 
        unserved and underserved cropland and ranchland is critical to 
        the United States economy and to the continued leadership of 
        the United States in global food production.
            (6) Despite the growing demand for broadband Internet 
        access service on cropland and ranchland, broadband Internet 
        access service is not consistently available where needed for 
        agricultural operations.
            (7) The Federal Communications Commission has an important 
        role to play in the deployment of broadband Internet access 
        service infrastructure on unserved and underserved cropland and 
        ranchland to promote precision agriculture.

SEC. 3. TASK FORCE.

    (a) Definitions.--
            (1) In general.--In this section--
                    (A) the term ``broadband Internet access service'' 
                has the meaning given the term in section 8.2 of title 
                47, Code of Federal Regulations, or any successor 
                regulation;
                    (B) the term ``Commission'' means the Federal 
                Communications Commission;
                    (C) the term ``Department'' means the Department of 
                Agriculture;
                    (D) the term ``Secretary'' means the Secretary of 
                Agriculture; and
                    (E) the term ``Task Force'' means the Task Force 
                for Meeting the Connectivity and Technology Needs of 
                Precision Agriculture in the United States, as 
                established under subsection (b).
            (2) Agricultural terms.--For purposes of this Act, the 
        Secretary shall define the terms ``agricultural operations'', 
        ``cropland'', and ``ranchland''.
    (b) Establishment.--Not later than 1 year after the date of 
enactment of this Act, the Commission shall establish the Task Force 
for Meeting the Connectivity and Technology Needs of Precision 
Agriculture in the United States.
    (c) Duties.--
            (1) In general.--The Task Force shall collaborate with the 
        Secretary and public and private stakeholders in the 
        agriculture and technology fields to--
                    (A) identify and measure current gaps in broadband 
                Internet access service coverage of cropland and 
                ranchland;
                    (B) assemble a comprehensive guide of all Federal 
                programs or resources working to expand broadband 
                Internet access service on unserved cropland and 
                ranchland;
                    (C) develop policy recommendations to promote the 
                rapid, expanded deployment of fixed and mobile 
                broadband Internet access service on unserved croplands 
                and ranchlands, with a goal of achieving reliable 
                service on 95 percent of croplands and ranchlands in 
                the United States by 2025;
                    (D) promote effective policy and regulatory 
                solutions that encourage the adoption of broadband 
                Internet access service on farms and ranches and 
                promote precision agriculture;
                    (E) propose new rules of the Commission or 
                amendments to existing rules of the Commission to 
                achieve the goals and purposes described in 
                subparagraph (C);
                    (F) recommend specific steps that the Commission 
                and other Federal agencies should take to obtain 
                reliable and standardized data measurements of 
                broadband Internet access service coverage as may be 
                necessary to target funding support to unserved 
                croplands and ranchlands in need of broadband Internet 
                access service; and
                    (G) recommend specific steps that the Commission 
                should take to ensure that the expertise of the 
                Secretary and available farm data are reflected in 
                developing Federal programs to deploy broadband 
                Internet access service infrastructure and to direct 
                available funding to unserved croplands and ranchlands 
                where needed.
            (2) Consultation.--The Task Force shall consult with the 
        Secretary to develop recommendations for the Commission that 
        utilize the expertise, data mapping information, and resources 
        of the Department that the Department uses to identify 
        croplands, ranchlands, and other areas with agricultural 
        operations.
    (d) Membership.--The Task Force shall be--
            (1) composed of not more than 15 members who shall--
                    (A) be selected by the Chairman of the Commission 
                in consultation with appropriate staff of the 
                Commission and with the Secretary; and
                    (B) include--
                            (i) agricultural producers representing 
                        diverse geographic regions and farm sizes, 
                        including owners and operators of farms of less 
                        than 100 acres;
                            (ii) Internet service providers, including 
                        regional or rural fixed and mobile broadband 
                        Internet access service providers and 
                        telecommunications infrastructure providers;
                            (iii) representatives from the satellite 
                        industry;
                            (iv) representatives from precision 
                        agriculture equipment manufacturers, including 
                        drone manufacturers, manufacturers of 
                        autonomous agricultural machinery, and 
                        manufacturers of farming robotics technologies; 
                        and
                            (v) representatives from State and local 
                        governments; and
            (2) fairly balanced in terms of technologies, points of 
        view, and fields represented on the Task Force.
    (e) Reports.--Not later than 1 year after the date on which the 
Commission establishes the Task Force, and annually thereafter, the 
Commission shall submit to Congress a report that details--
            (1) the status of fixed and mobile broadband Internet 
        access service coverage of croplands and ranchlands;
            (2) the projected future connectivity needs of agricultural 
        operations, farmers, and ranchers; and
            (3) the steps being taken to accurately measure the 
        availability of high speed broadband Internet access service on 
        croplands and ranchlands and the limitations of current, as of 
        the date of the report, measurement processes.
    (f) Existing Funds.--The Commission shall use existing funds of the 
Commission to carry out the Task Force and the duties of the Commission 
under this section.
    (g) Termination.--The Task Force shall terminate on January 1, 
2025.
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