Website: www.puc.idaho.gov
PUC orders “number pooling” to delay new area code
The Idaho Public Utilities Commission has been granted
authority by the Federal Communications Commission to order most of the states’
telecommunications providers to participate in a number pooling program that
will extend the life of Idaho’s single “208” area code.
“It has been the longstanding policy of this commission to
delay the implementation of another area code as long as possible to avoid the
resulting disruption, inconvenience and potential cost to Idaho’s business and
residential customers,” said Commission President Paul Kjellander.
NeuStar, the FCC agency that manages telephone area codes
in North America, is projecting that Idaho’s area code will run out of
telephone numbers in the second quarter of 2010. To delay that exhaust date,
the Idaho commission is expanding mandatory “1,000-block number pooling” to
include areas of the state beyond Boise. The Treasure Valley area has been
ordered to participate in number pooling since 2002.
In areas outside Boise, telephone numbers are assigned to
telecommunications companies in 10,000-number blocks. With the proliferation of
wireless telephones, new competitive telephone companies, paging and messaging
services and Voice over Internet Protocol (VoIP), the demand for new telephone
numbers has increased significantly. However, many providers assigned blocks of
10,000 numbers do not use all the numbers assigned them, leaving lots of
numbers “stranded”, but not in use. In its petition to the FCC seeking
mandatory number pooling, the Idaho commission reported that only 42.2 percent
of the numbers assigned to Idaho providers are in use.
This is the second time Idaho has been able to delay
another area code. In August of 2001, the FCC projected Idaho’s area code would
exhaust in the fall of 2003. In 2002, the commission ordered Boise area
telecommunications providers to return numbers not in use and then receive new
numbers only in 1,000-number blocks as needed. Today’s order expands number
pooling to include the entire state. Not required to participate are rural
providers that do not have local number portability or rural companies that do
not have a competitive landline or wireless provider. Pagers, because they do
not have local number portability, are also not mandated to participate.
However, the commission is strongly encouraging paging companies to participate
on a voluntary basis.
All telecommunications providers that fall under the
mandatory requirements must evaluate their numbering resources and donate all
unused 1,000-number blocks and all 1,000-number blocks that have less than 10
percent of their numbers assigned to the NeuStar numbering pool. Those numbers
can then be assigned back to Idaho providers as they demonstrate a need.
A full
text of the commission’s order, along with other documents related to this
case, are available on the commission’s Web site at www.puc.idaho.gov. Click on “File Room”
and then on “Telecommunications Cases” and scroll down to Case No. GNR-T-07-04.
Interested parties may petition the commission for
reconsideration by no later than Oct. 4. Petitions for reconsideration must set
forth specifically why the petitioner contends that the order is unreasonable,
unlawful or erroneous. Petitions should include a statement of the nature and
quantity of evidence the petitioner will offer if reconsideration is granted.
Petitions
can be delivered to the commission at 472 W. Washington St. in Boise, mailed to
P.O. Box 83720, Boise, ID, 83720-0074, or faxed to 208-334-3762.