About Our Members

The future of rural America is directly tied to the quality of its telecommunications capability. In an era of exploding technology, deregulation, and marketplace competition, NTCA's goal is to ensure that rural Americans receive telecommunications services on a par with those available to urban residents -- and at reasonable cost.

America's independent telephone systems serve less than 5% of the nation's telephone subscribers, but their service areas encompass more than 40% of the nation's land mass. Small and rural telcos provide rural America with an efficient, technologically advanced telecommunications capability, and thus play an essential role in maintaining the nation's economy.

NTCA members vary tremendously in size, but the average telco has approximately 5,344 subscribers, 31 employees, and an annual revenue base of between $1 million and $5 million. Many also own cable TV and cellular subsidiaries. And with their state-of-the-art switching and transmission facilities, many also offer enhanced services.

Customer bases of NTCA members range from less than 100 subscribers to more than 50,000. The smallest member employs a staff of two, and the largest more than 400. Annual operating revenues range from less than $100,000 to more than $40 million.

NTCA members' highest customer density, approximately seven subscribers per line mile, is in the rural Southeast. One Texas company serves, on average, one person per 10 line miles. By contrast, the Bell operating companies, on average, serve 130 customers per line mile.

NTCA's membership is divided into 10 geographic regions, each of which elects one representative to sit on the NTCA Board of Directors that governs the association. The board chooses a president from among the 10 national directors. Thirteen committees set association policy in specific areas. Shirley Bloomfield serves as NTCA's chief executive officer. NTCA has 70 employees at its Arlington, Va., headquarters and 86 employees at its benefits service center in Asheville, N.C., in addition to eight field representatives throughout the country.