From our August 31, 2000, edition.

Valor to begin local telephone service 

By Roger Estlack, Clarendon Enterprise

Valor Telecom to begin offering local phone service September 1

IRVING – On September 1, 2000, Valor Telecom will assume operational control of over 325,000 local phone lines in areas of Texas currently served by Verizon (formerly GTE), including Clarendon and Hedley.

“Valor Telecom is proud to serve Texas,” said Anne K. Bingaman, chairman and chief executive officer of Valor Telecom.  “With our corporate headquarters located in Irving, and one of our customer service centers located in Texarkana, we look forward to bringing a strong and lasting business presence to all the communities we will serve.”

On September 1, all customer records and pending orders will transfer to Valor Telecom.  In the first 15 days of transfer, temporary systems will be used while transferred records and service orders are loaded into new automated systems and re-tested.  Current phone service will not be affected by the transition.

To handle new service orders and the backlog of pending orders, Valor Telecom has hired additional personnel, installed new systems, and worked closely with government and regulatory officials and community leaders to prepare for the transfer of lines.  During September and October, Valor Telecom may receive a high volume of calls, and customers may experience delays in placing new orders.  However, any delays will be temporary during this transition period.

With respect to customer billing, phone rates will not change, but the Valor Telecom phone bill has been reformatted.  Therefore, some of the charges and fees may appear in a different section.  Furthermore, the transfer of lines to Valor Telecom will not affect customers’ current long distance and Internet services.  Customers who have selected Verizon as their long distance and/or Internet provider will begin receiving a separate bill for those services.  Valor Telecom officials said that the company will soon offer long-distance service so that customers can have the convenience of receiving one bill for local and long distance services.

Valor Telecom is mailing information, including customer service and repair phone numbers, to its business and residential customers in Texas.  Beginning September 1, 2000, if customers have questions about their local phone service, they should all Valor Telecom toll-free at 1-877-520-5220.

Valor Telecom’s business presence in the state includes its corporate headquarters located in Irving, Texas, where it employs approximately 175, and two operating divisions. The company has also established a customer service and repair center in Texarkana, Texas, with approximately 125 employees.  In addition, Verizon employees in these Texas exchanges will become employees of Valor Telecom.

With the Texas access lien acquisition, Valor Telecom will own and operate 540,000 business and residential local access lines, making it one of the largest independent phone service providers in the United States based on access lines.  The company launched operations of 120,000 local access lines in Oklahoma July 1 and will begin operating 95,000 local access lines in New Mexico on September 1.

Valor Telecom is a privately held company with operating subsidiaries in Oklahoma, New Mexico, and Texas.  Valor Telecom owns and operates primarily rural local access lines in the Southwest United States.  Valor Telecom’s major investors include: Welsh, Carson, Anderson & Stowe, Vestar Capital, Citicorp Venture Capital, and a group of twelve Hispanic investors.  Valor Telecom’s corporate headquarters are located in Irving.

For more information, visit Valor's website.