THE WHITE HOUSE

Office of the Press Secretary

PRESIDENT CLINTON NAMES CHRISTOPHER A. MCLEAN TO SERVE AS ADMINISTRATOR

FOR RURAL UTILITES SERVICE AT THE DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE

The President today announced his intent to nominate Christopher A. McLean, to serve as Administrator, Rural Utilities Service (RUS), at the Department of Agriculture (USDA).

Mr. Christopher A. McLean, of Omaha, Nebraska has been serving as Acting Administrator for RUS and as Acting Governor of the Rural Telephone Bank since November 1999. Prior to that, he served as Deputy Administrator for the RUS and Deputy Governor of the Rural Telephone Bank since January 1998. From 1997 to 1998, Mr. McLean served as Legal Counsel to Senator Bob Kerrey (D-NE). From 1982 to 1997, Mr. McLean was Legal Counsel and Legislative Assistant for Senator J. James Exon (D-NE). For over fifteen years on Capitol Hill, Mr. McLean worked on telecommunications, budget, transportation, and trade issues. Mr. McLean was a founding member of the group of U.S. Senators and congressional staffers known as the FARM TEAM who helped create the universal service and rural provisions of the Telecommunications Act of 1996.

Mr. McLean received his B.S. in Business Administration and J.D., cum laude, from Creighton University and a Master of Laws, International and Comparative Law from Georgetown University.

The RUS Administrator manages the USDA's electric, water and telecommunications utility financing programs. The RUS helps finance rural electric, telecommunications and water projects and administers distance learning and telemedicine loan and grant program. The RUS portfolio contains over $42 billion in rural utility infrastructure investments. The Rural Telephone Bank is a public/private lending institution that lends for rural telecommunications infrastructure in concurrence with RUS.

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