The Federal Communications Commission (Commission) intends to establish a Federal Advisory Committee, known as the ‘‘Task Force for Reviewing the Connectivity and Technology Needs of Precision Agriculture in the United States." The FCC intends to establish the charter on or before December 19, 2019, providing the Task Force with authorization to operate for two years. In consultation with the Secretary of Agriculture, and in collaboration with public and private stakeholders in the agriculture and technology fields, the purpose of the Task Force is to:

• Identify and measure current gaps in the availability of broadband internet access service on agricultural land; develop policy recommendations to promote the rapid, expanded deployment of broadband internet access service on unserved agricultural land, with a goal of achieving reliable capabilities on 95 percent of agricultural land in the United States by 2025;
• promote effective policy and regulatory solutions that encourage the adoption of broadband internet access service on farms and ranches and promote precision agriculture; recommend specific new rules or amendments to existing rules of the FCC that the Commission should issue to achieve the goals and purposes of the policy recommendations described in the second bullet in this list;
• recommend specific steps that the FCC should take to obtain reliable and standardized data measurements of the availability of broadband internet access service as may be necessary to target funding support, from future programs of the Commission dedicated to the deployment of broadband internet access service, to unserved agricultural land in need of broadband internet access service; and
• recommend specific steps that the FCC should consider to ensure that the expertise of the Secretary and available farm data are reflected in future programs of the Commission dedicated to the infrastructure deployment of broadband internet access service and to direct available funding to unserved agricultural land where needed.

A fierce battle over the regulation of the internet was riddled with millions of fake comments in the most prolific known instance of political impersonation in US history. In a key part of the puzzle, two little-known firms, Media Bridge and LCX Digital, working on behalf of industry group Broadband for America, misappropriated names and personal information as part of a bid to submit more than 1.5 million statements favorable to their cause. The anti–net neutrality comments harvested on behalf of Broadband for America, the industry group that represented telecommunications giants including AT&T, Cox, and Comcast, were uploaded to the Federal Communications Commission website by Media Bridge founder Shane Cory, a former executive director of both the Libertarian Party and the conservative sting group Project Veritas. 

The rise of political impersonation threatens a core aspect of US democracy: the process by which federal agencies canvass public opinion before enacting new regulations. The process is not the same as voting, and the results aren’t binding — but they provide a forum for public debate, and officials are obliged to consider all viewpoints submitted, making them a crucible for lobbying by powerful interests. The internet has made it possible for these consultations to be conducted virtually, vastly extending their reach in an apparent leap forward for digital-era democracy. But there’s little stopping anyone from submitting statements under fake — or misappropriated — identities.