by Catherine Moyer
2010 OPASTCO Chairman

As is traditional in the leadership address, I first want to give you a little background about me and our company.  I am the legal and regulatory affairs director for Pioneer Communications, headquartered in Ulysses, Kansas.  Yes, I am a lawyer, and, yes, I have been admitted to the bar.  But, as with any small company, your title does not really matter.  We should just all have the title of special projects director, because as fast as our industry has been changing, I know we all tackle whatever is necessary at the time.

Pioneer Communications is in southwest Kansas, and we provide wireline telephone service, cable television, we are an Internet service provider, and we have a rural wireless subsidiary.  We serve about 5,000 square miles with our wireline service, and have about 13,500 access lines.  We are headquartered in our largest population center, which has about 6,500 people.  Notice I called it a population center, not a city.

Pioneer Communications is a cooperative.  Yes, I said cooperative.  However, I do work for my father, so I tease the other board members that they let a co-op employee sneak into the leadership because they thought working for my father meant we were a commercial company.  Joking aside, as plain ‘ole telecommunications companies, co-ops and commercial companies, we are more alike than we are different.  Sure there are unique issues to both types of companies.  But ultimately the issues that affect both types, that affect our entire industry, are more important than those that divide us.  Because if we do not conquer those issues that affect us all, none of us will be around to deal with those issues that affect us differently.

The same goes for the multitude of associations that represent our companies on a variety of issues—wireline phone, universal service, video, broadband, wireless.  My company belongs to a large number of associations, and these associations too are more alike than different.  While there are different means to an end, we fight much more effectively together than apart.  I will look for every opportunity to form alliances, even with entities that up to now we have had nothing in common.  As technology continues to evolve, as we approach this world in which the size of the broadband pipe into a home is the most important thing, and the applications that run over the pipe, voice included, is secondary, our alliances will come in new, and perhaps as of now, unforeseen places.  Building alliances will make our voice stronger and louder, especially in the place in which we need it the most, Washington, D.C.

In today’s industry, the things happening in Washington, D.C., at Congress and the FCC, are the most important outside influences on our companies.  What will the FCC’s National Broadband Plan look like?  What will Congress do with it?  What will the FCC do with it?  What does Universal Service look like in the future of broadband?  As leaders of our companies and the rural communities we serve, and in which we choose to live, we need to give the time to lead within our association, within our industry.  If we choose to lead, we can influence Washington, D.C., to act in ways that benefit our companies and our communities.  As Congress and the FCC continue to make decisions on how our companies will look in the future, our influence is of the utmost importance—we live in rural America, and we do know what is best for our communities.

As an association, OPASTCO has made changes within the organization to put us in a better position to effectuate the changes and influence the outside forces.  Our Separations and Access Committee has been revamped and renamed.  It will now carry the name of Regulatory Policy Committee.  Multiple other committees, such as the Video and Broadband Committee, have been folded into the Regulatory Policy Committee, allowing one committee to now deal with the multitude of issues that have become so intertwined they cannot be separated—video, broadband, universal service.

We have also created the Business Development Committee.  It has been charged with identifying new potential revenue streams or opportunities to cut costs for the membership.

And, as you know, we are revamping our image to focus more on the Transition to IP.  While this transition will change our companies, and the way we view our companies, this is our future.  Just because our customers do not live in an urban area, does not mean they do not want cutting-edge technology and the opportunity to transition as the rest of the world does.  But, it is up to us to make sure they have the technology and that it is affordable enough to access.

In conclusion, we can contribute to a movement toward the future of telecommunications.  But, we have to get involved.  We have to work together.  We have to form alliances.  And we must have the courage and initiative to move our industry forward, even if the future is scary and uncertain.  I invite every one of you to make a trip to Washington, D.C., to visit Congress and the FCC, and encourage you to get involved on one the OPASTCO committees, to make sure your company’s views and experiences are utilized.  And, I look forward to working with each of you to form alliances with other entities.

I look forward to my year of leadership, and I thank you for the opportunity to serve.  Thank you.