By TIM ALEXANDER

Illinois Correspondent

CHAMPAIGN, Ill. — When the USDA Task Force on Agriculture and Rural Prosperity identified more than 100 actions the government could undertake to achieve the vision of a better rural America, Illinois USDA Rural Development (RD) Director Doug Wilson was listening.

He is working to put forth actions that include legislative, regulatory and policy changes built around five key indicators included in the task force’s report, Wilson told Farm World, saying that at the core of the actions is e-connectivity for rural Americans.

“I hate to call it a good start, because (e-connectivity) is something that Rural Development has been involved in, but obviously this administration has put a heavy emphasis on it,” he said, referring to the No. 1 key indicator identified by the Task Force.

E-connectivity is what Wilson calls the overarching improvement or the “catalyst” that will carry the other four key task force indicators – which are quality of life improvement, support for a rural workforce, technological innovation and rural economic development – to fruition.

“I’ll make the statement that at home on the farm, we’re still on a copper line, so I am still looking for the day when fiber will reach our (northeastern Illinois farm). I fully understand some of the limits and the challenges that folks have with that,” said the second-term RD director for Illinois (his first term was from 2001-08 under former President George W. Bush; he was appointed last year by President Donald Trump).

“We’re working hard to do promotional and informational meetings. We’ve been working jointly with the rural utility service to conduct meetings. We’re seeing progress being made. The administration has designated some funding to go towards e-connectivity and Congress, through their Omnibus Bill, has put forth even more money.

“Now it is the time to make the contacts and work through the details to move forward. But it is not going to be an overnight, snap-your-fingers thing and then everyone has rural e-connectivity.”

He likens the planning and work necessary for the fiber wiring of rural America to the efforts to bring it electricity and telephones last century. He said communities, cooperative telephone companies and a “wide array of groups” will need to work together and with Illinois RD and the Rural Utilities Service to achieve the massive infrastructure upgrade necessary to bring e-connectivity to rural areas.

”Schools, hospitals and health care centers will need to work with their communities to help sponsor some of these elements,” said Wilson, a third-generation corn and soybean farmer who has held leadership positions in Illinois ag organizations in the past.

“I think local telephone companies will be looking for economic development opportunities, not only for the health of the towns they are working or living in, but also from the point of view that a prosperous town means more customers for them. They are a natural connection to work with communities to utilize the funds that have been made available to us through the USDA, to bring our communities closer to competitiveness.”

Rural communities face obvious issues in competing for businesses, factories, jobs and, consequently, their schools, commerce and social fabric can suffer. Wilson has heard plenty on the subject from frustrated leaders of rural communities and school districts across the state, who want RD to be aware of their needs.

“Having high-speed internet available is an important resource teachers would look for. For a lot of young people and families, high-speed internet is an expected part of their quality of life. If they can’t be connected, they are going to feel they are missing out; that might discourage them from staying in their community or moving into a community that doesn’t have that resource available,” he explained.

“The business aspect of this is the same. Everyone pretty much needs to have a presence on the internet. Online sales are an important element to get your company known. If you are going to maintain and grow your community, you must have the communications elements within.”

Wilson’s Champaign office has been contacted by small, mid-size and large telecommunications companies interested in hopping on the rural bandwidth bandwagon in Illinois. There are telephone co-ops and others looking to expand their areas in the state as well, he said.

“Something I am really going to be watching is the upcoming FCC (Federal Communications Commission) reverse auction here in the next few months,” he said. “Territories are assigned to companies like Comcast or Verizon, and the challenge to some areas is that companies hold the rights to some areas but are not developing the service.

“The FCC can come back in and make those territories available. If the groups that hold those territories pledge to develop them, they can keep them, but if not, the way is cleared for another company to come in.

“In conjunction with that, Rural Development can help smaller entities that want to come in and expand service to an area. I see that as something very positive. I do understand that the last mile (of connectivity) is the most expensive in the countryside, but that is where we can come in to bridge that gap and make e-connectivity available in more rural areas.

“If the FCC and USDA can come together, I think we can make some progress in some of these communities that have been locked out,” he said.

Local grain elevators would also benefit from better connectivity. With access to high-speed internet, they could receive information on grain prices and be able to submit bids instantly and competitively. That speed and efficiency can mean significant profits for the elevator and the farmers it serves, according to Wilson.