Everything’s bigger in Texas, including the 2025 RTIME! More than 2,300 rural broadband providers gathered for an action-packed week in San Antonio.
The conference started Sunday morning with an executive policy discussion, where NTCA CEO Shirley Bloomfield and Executive Vice President Mike Romano answered questions on key policy issues. Attendees then participated in committee and council meetings and watched the UW-Stout Blue Devils (West Wisconsin Telcom Cooperative; Menomonie, Wis.) defeat Bath Bomb (West Carolina; Abbeville, S.C.) in the championship round of the Rural Rumble online esports tournament.
Themed “Connecting Today, Navigating Tomorrow,” a main focus of RTIME was the critical role that the Universal Service Fund (USF) plays in enabling community-based providers to deliver rural connectivity comparable in price and quality to urban areas. This conversation could not be more timely, as the FCC, NTCA and others are scheduled to defend the USF contribution mechanism before the Supreme Court at the end of March.
NTCA Board Chair Roxie Jorgenson, board secretary of MTA (Palmer, Alaska), and Bloomfield spoke about how the USF is the “North Star” in the association’s advocacy efforts and its new strategic plan.
Bloomfield highlighted the association’s longstanding work to support the USF, noting, “NTCA and our members are ready for the fight. We have the right story to tell. We have the right members to head into battle alongside. As a team and association, we have a lot of warriors in our midst.”
She also urged attendees to join together to speak with one voice and unveiled a new public service announcement video that the association created as part of the ongoing #BroadbandBuiltToLast public relations and advocacy campaign. She called upon attendees to share the video on social media, in customer newsletters and on streaming platforms on a “USF Day of Action,” on March 12.
After the grand opening of the expo hall, with over 120 exhibitors (and a few friendly alpacas), educational sessions focused on artificial intelligence, alternative technologies, esports and cybersecurity.
The opening day concluded at the Tejas Rodeo, where attendees joined the Foundation for Rural Service for an evening rodeo, line dancing, corn hole, roping lessons, and, of course, Texas barbeque.
On Tuesday, the Women in Telecom program hosted an interactive session on wellness strategies to help attendees find a healthy work-life balance. Sessions on the USF, permitting, partnerships and more continued throughout the day before the NTCA Rural Broadband PAC hosted an evening at the Natural Bridge Caverns.
On the final day of the conference, there was a flurry of activity on the main stage. Bloomfield presented the annual Excellence Awards to eight leaders who have shown exceptional commitment to their communities and the rural broadband industry. The Foundation for Rural Service presented the 2025 Distinguished Service Award to Nancy White, and Romano and Corning Sales Director Brian Davis announced the extension of the NTCA-Corning Rural Broadband Supply Program for a third year.
Later, CoBank Managing Directors Andy Smith and Lennie Blakeslee joined Bloomfield on stage to discuss the Supreme Court brief that CoBank and NCSC led to highlight the importance of the USF for not only rural providers but also the agriculture and healthcare industries, as well as others in the rural ecosystem. Blakeslee noted that, as a lender, “[CoBank’s] success is based on the success of the communities we serve.” John Suter, vice president of economic research at NCSC, then gave an economic update and offered predictions for 2025.
Thank you to everyone who joined us in San Antonio or followed along online. See you in Washington, D.C., for the Legislative and Policy Conference!