If it’s August, it means it’s time for the Foundation for Rural Service (FRS) Congressional Broadband Tour. This annual event brings congressional staff members to different parts of the country to learn about rural broadband and how it is critical for education, health care, economic prosperity and thriving rural communities. From August 12-15, the tour went to southeastern New Mexico, where 15 staff members from the House of Representatives spent many hours on a bus, visiting the facilities or meeting with leaders from seven different NTCA—The Rural Broadband Association members in the state, as well as local business and community leaders.
After arriving in Clovis, New Mexico, and getting a warm welcome at ENMR Plateau Telecommunications, the congressional staff members toured the facility and learned about a network operation center, the characteristics of fiber and some of the challenges in providing broadband in a rural area. From there, we received a fascinating tour of Cannon Air Force Base, home of the 27th Special Operations Wing, which plans and executes specialized and contingency operations using advanced aircraft, tactics and air refueling techniques to infiltrate, exfiltrate and resupply special operations forces. ENMR Plateau Telecommunications provides broadband service to the base and is a trusted partner in their daily operations. A delicious dinner with members and leaders of the New Mexico Exchange Carrier Group was the perfect way to end the first day of the tour.
The second day started with an enthusiastic welcome from the local businesses of Artesia and a tour of Penasco Valley Telephone Cooperative (PVT) with their company leaders, as well as leaders from Leaco Rural Telephone Cooperative and Tularosa Basin Telephone Company, Inc. Congressional staff learned about how New Mexico local exchange carriers joined forces to become the New Mexico Fiber Network to operate and maintain the statewide middle-mile network. After getting back on the bus and stopping to see a PVT fiber installation in process, we visited an elementary school with 19 students, hearing from the school principal who is also the bus driver and the lunch cook. The congressional staff members were a little shocked to see just how small the school was, but also impressed by how dedicated the teachers and staff were to provide the best possible education to their students — and how important it is for that school to have a robust broadband connection, thanks to PVT.
After traveling over the mountains in central New Mexico and going through Cloudcroft, the tour stopped at the Museum of Space History in Alamogordo. The bus ride highlighted the geographic challenges of installing fiber, which in this case required collaboration between two provider companies.
The group woke up the next day in a beautiful setting on the land of the Mescalero Apache Tribe in Mescalero. A welcome from tribal leaders led to a visit to Mescalero Apache Telecom, Inc., which provides 100% fiber-to-the-home and is owned by the tribe. Other highlights on the tour included a stop at the Mescalero Indian Health Service, the tribal fish hatchery and a unique opportunity to observe an Apache ceremony, also known as the Changing Woman Ceremony, which is a rite of passage for Apache girls transitioning into womanhood.
In the afternoon, there were presentations about the Emergency Broadband Operations Team, a group that meets monthly to provide collaborative support for short-term and long-term internet access and the restoration of broadband infrastructure and services for areas impacted by disasters, including recent wildfires and floods. Another presentation walked the congressional staff through a recently completed $6 million project that partnered the city of Ruidoso with Uniti to transition 8,000 residential and business locations from copper to fiber. Also joining the group that afternoon was Jeffrey Lopez, the newly-appointed director of the New Mexico Office of Broadband Access and Expansion.
Before heading to the conclusion of the tour in Las Cruces, the group visited a local landmark, PistachioLand, a thriving retail and tourism destination powered by nearly 300 solar panels, all of which rely on Tularosa Basin Telephone Company’s fiber broadband to operate efficiently.
The tour ended with a delicious New Mexico meal (and maybe a margarita or two), lots of laughs and celebrations of new friendships. Presenters from the various companies and stops all remarked about the engaged congressional staff and their insightful questions. For the congressional staff members, the Broadband Tour is a unique opportunity to see the impact of fiber and rural broadband in communities that rely every day on dependable and affordable internet connections. It is an honor to showcase the passion and excellence of NTCA member companies on the Broadband Tour.
Many thanks to the companies who were part of this year’s tour, and a special shout-out to Matejka and Jay Santillanes of the New Mexico Exchange Carrier Group (NMECG), who were instrumental in identifying topics, tours and presenters (as well as delicious restaurants and beautiful sights) for the itinerary. Thank you to Launa Waller of ENMR Plateau Telecommunications and also chair of the NMECG, as well as Ralph Score from Valley Telecom Group who is creating a video about the entire tour. Finally, thank you to FRS Board Chair Michael Prather who drove many hours from his office in Texas to welcome the group, and to Lorna Gilmore from NTCA who kept the entire group on track with her smile and professionalism.