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Maine Public Utilities Commission
NEWS RELEASE
Maine Public Utilities Commission
242 State Street
Augusta, Maine 04333-0018
web site: http://www.state.me.us/mpuc/
CONTACT: Phil Lindley, (207) 287-1598, phil.lindley@maine.gov
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
September 29, 1999
Maine Public Utilities Commission
Gets Authority to Avoid New Area Code
The Federal Communications Commission (FCC) yesterday afternoon granted the Maine Public Utilities Commission (PUC) authority to implement number conservation measures. The authority granted should enable the PUC, working in close cooperation with Maine’s telecommunications companies, to postpone the need for a second area code in Maine for many years.
Last June, the North American Numbering Plan Administrator (NANPA) notified the PUC that the 207 area code would exhaust during the second quarter of 2000 and that a second area code would be needed. The Commission immediately began an investigation into the issue and soon discovered that the problem was not a shortage of numbers but the inefficient allocation of numbers to carriers in blocks of 10,000.
Over the past year, the Commission has worked at both the federal and state level to obtain the authority it needed to ensure a more efficient use of numbers and to save the 207 area code for all of Maine. Despite strong pressure from some industry players to leave all numbering authority at the federal level with the FCC and the industry-controlled North American Numbering Council (NANC), the FCC has now agreed that the states can and should play an important role in number conservation. While waiting for the FCC to respond to its Petition seeking such authority, Maine instituted several state law-based measures which slowed the rate of central office code consumption, at the same time providing opportunity for new carriers to enter the market and serve Mainers.
Members of Maine’s congressional delegation, the Governor, and the State Legislature have all supported the Commission’s efforts. Senator Collins drafted and sponsored legislation which would require the FCC to grant states authority to implement number conservation measures while the FCC drafts its final order on its own Number Optimization Rulemaking. Senator Snowe sent several letters to the FCC encouraging it to grant Maine’s requests. In addition, the Maine State Legislature submitted a joint resolution to the FCC memorializing support for a single area code in Maine. Governor King has communicated directly to the FCC stressing the importance of this issue to Maine’s consumers and businesses.
"The Commission believes that the authority we have received will allow us to ensure that numbers are not foolishly wasted. We now have the tools that should enable Maine to avoid creating a second area code for many years," stated Thomas L. Welch, Chairman of the PUC.
The FCC’s order provides the Commission with authority to implement thousand-block number pooling. Under this system, carriers will get blocks of 1,000 numbers rather than 10,000; this should dramatically increase the efficiency of number usage in Maine. The Commission was also authorized to reclaim codes that are not being properly used or put into service, to establish a requirement for carriers to demonstrate that they have facilities ready to serve customers in place before obtaining initial codes, to establish fill ratios that must be met before a carrier can obtain additional blocks of numbers, and to require carriers to demonstrate need before codes are assigned.
The Commission, as required by the FCC, will coordinate with other states that have received similar authority (New York, California, Florida, and Massachusetts) on many of these issues. The Commission will continue to encourage voluntary conservation and explore other available remedies.
The only Maine request that the FCC denied was the authority to require unassigned number portability (UNP), which allows carriers to share individual numbers rather than whole blocks. The FCC, however, did encourage carriers to voluntarily participate in UNP. Bell Atlantic has already stated that it is capable of providing UNP and that it would be available if certain administrative issues are resolved. The Commission intends to pursue this measure as well as those specifically authorized by the FCC.
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To arrange an interview with Chairman Welch or Commissioners Nugent or Diamond, please contact Phil Lindley at 287.1598 or by e-mail at phil.lindley@maine.gov. This release has been posted on the Commission website at: http://janus.state.me.us/mpuc/news-dir.htm.