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 NEWS  Federal  Communications  Commission  445  12  th  Street,  S.  W.  Washington,  D.  C.  20554  This  is  an  unofficial  announcement  of  Commission  action.  Release  of  the  full  text  of  a  Commission  order  constitutes  official  action.  See  MCI  v.  FCC.  515  F  2d  385  (D.  C.  Circ  1974).  News  Media  Information  202  /  418-  0500  Internet:  http://  www.  fcc.  gov  TTY:  1-  888-  835-  5322 
 FOR  IMMEDIATE  RELEASE:  News  Media  Contact:  August  28,  2002  Rosemary  Kimball  at  (202)  418-  0511 
 e-  mail:  rkimball@  fcc.  gov 


 FCC  CHAIRMAN  MICHAEL  POWELL  AND  COMMISSIONER  MICHAEL  COPPS  TO  PARTICIPATE  AT  NATIONAL  SUMMIT  ON  EMERGING  TRIBAL  ECONOMIES, 
 SEPTEMBER  19,  2002,  IN  PHOENIX  Chairman  Powell  to  Deliver  Keynote  Address 


 Washington,  DC  –  FCC  Chairman  Michael  K.  Powell  will  deliver  a  keynote  address  at  the  National  Summit  on  Emerging  Tribal  economies,  as  part  of  the  FCC’s  Indian 
 Telecommunications  Initiatives  program  (ITI).  He  will  speak  on  September  19,  the  day  the  FCC  and  other  federal  agencies  will  discuss  their  programs  and  initiatives  of  interest  to 
 American  Indian  tribal  and  Alaska  Native  village  communities.  FCC  Commissioner  Michael  J.  Copps  will  also  participate. 


 The  summit  is  in  Phoenix,  AZ,  from  September  16  to  19  and  is  sponsored  by  federal  agencies,  Indian  Country  and  corporate  America.  For  further  information  or  to  register  for  the 
 conference  go  to  www.  lakotaexpress.  com/  nationalsummit. 
 The  FCC’s  ITI  is  a  comprehensive  program  that  seeks  to  foster  partnerships  among  tribes,  industry  and  government  agencies  to  target  specific  concerns,  identify  potential  solutions, 
 and  bring  affordable,  quality  telecommunications  services  to  American  Indian  tribes  and  Alaska  Native  village  communities. 


 Access  to  telecommunications  services  is  critical  to  the  successful  development  of  all  communities.  Among  other  benefits,  telecommunications  access  enhances  educational  and 
 learning  opportunities,  through  access  to  the  Internet;  employment  and  business  opportunities;  public  safety  services,  including  access  to  emergency  services  and  long  distance  medical 
 services;  and,  access  to  government  services. 
 The  ITI’s  goals  are  to  increase  the  telephone  penetration  rate  among  American  Indian  tribes  and  Alaska  Native  village  communities;  facilitate  the  deployment  of  telecommunications 
 infrastructure  necessary  to  provide  telecommunications  services;  and  inform  consumers  about  financial  support  available  through  federal  government  programs,  including  Universal  Service 
 discounts  for  low  income  customers. 
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 The  FCC’s  ITI  includes: 
 €  interactive  regional  workshops  to  address  telecommunications  issues;  €  outreach  by  key,  senior  FCC  officials  who  will  attend  and  participate  in  various 
 conferences,  meetings,  and  other  events  sponsored  by  tribes,  tribal  organizations  and  others  interested  in  telecom  issues; 
 €  FCC  staff  meetings  with  representatives  of  individual  tribes  to  learn  about  their  unique  telecommunications  issues;  and 
 €  distribution  of  educational  materials  to  tribes  and  tribal  organizations  about  telecommunications  issues. 


 -  FCC  – 
 For  information  on  this  and  other  topics  of  interest  to  consumers,  visit  our  Web  site  at  www.  fcc.  gov/  cgb. 


 To  receive  information  on  this  and  other  FCC  consumer  topics  through  the  Commission’s  electronic  subscriber  service,  click  on  www.  fcc.  gov/  cgb/  emailservice.  html. 
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