Thomas J. Tauke
Executive Vice President - Public Affairs, Policy and Communications
Verizon Communications

Thomas J. Tauke is executive vice president - Public Affairs, Policy and Communications, a position he has held since May 2004. In this role, Tauke oversees media relations, employee communications, reputation management, philanthropy and external relations for Verizon. As the company’s senior policy executive, he is responsible for the development of Verizon’s public policy positions and advocacy at the local, state, federal, and international levels. Under his leadership, Verizon has been active in the fight against illiteracy and has played an instrumental role in shaping public policies related to such issues as broadband access, health care, taxation and spectrum allocation.

Tauke serves as a member of Verizon’s Corporate Council and Operations Council.

Before joining NYNEX in 1991, Tauke was a member of Congress, representing Iowa’s Second Congressional District in the United States House of Representatives. During his congressional service from 1979 to 1991, he was a member of the Telecommunications Subcommittee. He served on the Energy and Commerce, Education and Labor, and Small Business Committees, as well as the Select Committee on Aging. He also was on the Pepper Commission on Comprehensive Health Care, the Infant Mortality Commission and the Biomedical Ethics Board.

Tauke served as a member of the Iowa General Assembly from 1975 to 1979.

Tauke is a past chairman of the United States Telecom Association (USTA) where he is currently on the Board of Directors and is a member of the executive committee. He is chairman of the board of Home Technology Systems, Inc., in Dubuque, Iowa; serves on the Board of Directors of the Business Industry Political Action Committee; is chairman of the Board of Regents of Loras College in Dubuque, Iowa; and is a member of the Board of Directors of Jobs for America’s Graduates.

Tauke received a Bachelor of Arts degree from Loras College in 1972 and a Juris Doctorate from the University of Iowa College of Law in 1974.

Tauke and his wife, Beverly, have two children, Joseph and Elizabeth.

July 2007