BEFORE THE PENNSYLVANIA PUBLIC UTILITY COMMISSION
Relief Plan for the 814 NPA : P-2009-2112925
______
COMMENTS OF THE OFFICE OF CONSUMER ADVOCATE ______
I. INTRODUCTION
The Pennsylvania Office of Consumer Advocate (OCA) hereby files these Comments in
response to the Order adopted by the Pennsylvania Public Utility Commission (Commission) in
the above-captioned matter on July 29, 2009 and published in the Pennsylvania Bulletin on
August 8, 2009. In this Order, the Commission discusses the recurrence of area code exhaust for
the 814 Numbering Plan Area (NPA) that comprises northwestern and central Pennsylvania.1 In its July 29th Order, the Commission seeks Comment on “how to implement the new area code”
and “when the new area code needs to be implemented.” July 29th Order at 8.
As indicated in the Commission’s Order, a petition was filed on June 9, 2009 by Neustar
Inc., (Neustar), the North American Numbering Plan Administrator, in its role as neutral third
party area code relief planner for Pennsylvania. In that petition, Neustar requested that an “all services distributed overlay for the geographic area covered by the 814 NPA” be implemented.
Neustar Petition at 1-2. With an “all services distributed overlay,” a new area code is assigned to
the same geographic area as the existing area code. July 29th Order at 3. This form of area code
relief requires “10-digit dialing” for all calls but eliminates the need for approximately half of the
1 The geographic area covered by the 814 NPA is comprised of all or part of more than 20 counties located from Erie across the northern tier to Potter County, down through Centre and Clearfield Counties to the southern border with Maryland, and includes cities of Erie, Oil City, State College and Altoona.
1
area code to automatically change their number to a new area code. In contrast, implementing
area code relief through a “geographic split” allows customers to retain 7-digit dialing for all
calls, but approximately half of the population would need to change signage and printed material, as well as reprogram any auto-dialing equipment, to recognize the new area code.2
According to Neustar estimates, the 814 NPA was projected to exhaust, i.e., run out of assignable
telephone numbers, during the third quarter of 2012. July 29th Order at 7.
The OCA has been active on area code issues at both the state and federal levels for more
than a decade. In addition to its involvement in area code issues before the Commission, the
OCA has long advocated consumer interests regarding area code issues on behalf of the National
Association of State Utility Consumer Advocates (NASUCA) before the Federal
Communications Commission (FCC) and the North American Numbering Council (NANC).
NANC advises the FCC on numbering issues.
The OCA appreciates the extensive efforts of this Commission over the past decade to judiciously implement new area codes in a manner that is both pro-competitive and pro-
consumer. This Commission, and particularly Commissioner Kim Pizzingrilli, has been a leader
nationwide in number conservation efforts for many years. This is particularly important given
the fact that not only are telephone numbers in each area code diminishing, but that the total
number of areas codes is diminishing as well. Such leadership has benefitted consumers not only
in Pennsylvania, but throughout the country.
At this time, the OCA submits that area code relief should only be approved after it is
determined by the Commission that a new area code is in fact truly needed. Once such a
2 For a complete list of advantages and disadvantages of the various forms of area code relief, see Exhibit A at page 6-9 of the Neustar filing at Docket No. P-2009-2117193, pertaining to the 570 NPA. 2
determination has been made, the OCA concurs with the recommendation that area code relief
should be implemented for the 814 NPA in the form of an all services overlay.
In support of these Comments, the OCA submits as follows:
II. SUMMARY OF COMMENTS
The Commission should first determine whether an additional area code is truly needed.
It is important to recall that the industry believed it would require similar relief several years ago when Neustar drafted a Petition in 2002 stating that the numbers in the 814 area code would be
exhausted by the first quarter of 2005.3 That relief was not needed at the time and the
Commission and the industry instead took steps to preserve the 814 area code in its present form
for several more years. As it has done in the past, the Commission should assure itself that area
code relief is needed now. Such a determination requires examining whether the telephone
numbers previously distributed have been used efficiently, and reclaiming those telephone
numbers that have been found to be used inefficiently.
The Commission should continue its proactive approach to numbering issues and ensure
that the existing telephone numbers assigned in the 814 area code are being used efficiently and
reclaim those numbers that are not. This is important given the history of the 814 area code as
well as current indications that telephone numbers could be used more efficiently in lieu of
implementing a new area code. The OCA commends the Commission for its recent Petition to
the FCC seeking authority to implement thousands-block pooling throughout Pennsylvania.4
3 The original Petition was never filed due to the subsequent implementation of various conservation measures that prolonged the life of the area code. July 29th Order at 7.
4 Pennsylvania Public Utility Commission’s Petition for Delegated Authority to Implement Number Conservation Measures, In the Matter of Numbering Resource Optimization, CC Docket No. 99-200 (dated July 13, 2009) (July 13th Petition). 3
The OCA supports the Commission’s Petition as an effective form of ensuring that numbering resources are being utilized efficiently and intends to file Comments at the FCC in support of this
Petition.
In the meantime, however, the OCA submits that, if it is determined that an additional area code is needed, the OCA concurs with the industry recommendation that the Commission should implement an area code overlay in the 814 NPA. An area code overlay will provide the necessary numbering resources without unduly burdening consumers. All existing customers would retain the 814 area code and would not have to change their telephone number. The
overlay will create less financial impact on business customers because there will be no need to
change signage, advertising, stationery, etc. unless they currently only show the 7-digit numbers.
An overlay also avoids the disruption associated with drawing a new boundary required when
implementing a geographic split. The benefits of area code overlay relief outweigh any
detriments.5
III. COMMENTS
A. Introduction.
The Pennsylvania Commission has been at the forefront of area code proliferation issues
nationwide for more than a decade. Even before the introduction of local exchange competition
brought about with the passage of the Federal Telecommunications Act of 1996 (TA-96),
Pennsylvania experienced one of the first new area codes in the country when the 215 NPA in
southeastern Pennsylvania was geographically split and the 610 NPA was introduced. Following
5 The OCA would note in this regard that when this question last arose nearly a decade ago in other portions of Pennsylvania, the OCA supported geographic splits primarily because of concerns over customer confusion with 10- digit dialing and potential anti-competitive impacts on those entities that received the new overlay codes. Based on our experience with overlay codes in other portions of Pennsylvania over the last 10 years as described below, however, the OCA would now agree with the recommendation in favor of an overlay at this time. 4
the passage of TA-96, which included specific provisions regarding numbering administration,
see, 47 U.S.C. § 251(e), the Commission recognized the value of thousands-block pooling when
it petitioned the FCC for authority to conduct pooling trials. Thousands-block pooling is the
distribution of telephone numbers to carriers in blocks of 1,000 (NXX-X), instead of in blocks of
10,000 (NXX). That petition led to the FCC’s seminal “Pennsylvania Numbering Order,”6 one
of the FCC’s first major Orders on area code issues.
Since the FCC’s Pennsylvania Numbering Order, this Commission has also been proactive in petitioning the FCC for additional numbering authority, including most recently filing a Petition for Delegated Authority to Implement Number Conservation Measures filed on
July 13, 2009 wherein the Commission seeks authority to mandate thousands-block pooling throughout Pennsylvania. Currently, the Commission is only permitted to mandate thousands- block pooling in certain rate centers, but the July 13, 2009 Petition to the FCC would allow the
Commission to mandate thousands-block pooling in every rate center. Once the Comment period is opened, the OCA intends to file Comments at the FCC in support of that Petition. The
Commission’s number conservation efforts have even included ordering the rescission of area code relief proposed for the 835 area code in southwestern Pennsylvania and the 445 area code for southeastern Pennsylvania once the Commission determined the additional area codes were not needed. The Commission should be commended for its efforts to manage scarce numbering resources in a pro-competitive and pro-consumer manner.
Commissioner Pizzingrilli has been particularly active on number conservation for the
Commission throughout her tenure as Commissioner. Commissioner Pizzingrilli has recognized
6 Petition for Declaratory Ruling and Request for Expedited Action on the July 15, 1997 Order of the Pennsylvania Public Utility Commission Regarding Area Codes 412, 610, 215 and 717, Memorandum Opinion and Order and Order on Reconsideration, 13 FCC Rcd at 19027 (1998).
5
that “[a]dding new area codes has a detrimental impact on the Commonwealth” that forces
consumers to incur substantial costs, such as reprogramming phones and changing signage and
stationery, while the phone companies incur implementation costs.7 In addition to these initial
problems, Commissioner Pizzingrilli has recognized that “the viability of the entire numbering
system in North America is threatened” because “[t]here are only a finite number of area codes
available” and thus, it is imperative that the Commission “continue[s] to preserve existing area
codes and ensure that numbering resources are used efficiently.”8 As discussed further below,
there are obviously fewer than one-thousand three-digit area codes available for the national
calling system, and when those numbers run out, the entire numbering system will have to be
revamped.
The Commission should continue to remain proactive in its efforts to ensure that
numbering resources are utilized efficiently. The impact of area code exhaust will cause
significant burden and expense and all reasonable efforts should be taken to avoid such a situation if it can be avoided. As a result, the Commission should assure itself that telephone numbers in the 814 area code are being used efficiently. If such assurances have been received, the Commission should implement an area code overlay for the 814 NPA.
B. The Commission Should Determine Whether A New Area Code Is Truly Needed And, If So, Implement An All Services Overlay Area Code In the 814 NPA.
1. The Commission should only implement a new area code after having taken the necessary steps to ensure that such actions are in fact necessary.
In its July 29th Order, the Commission seeks Comment on when any new area code must
be implemented. July 29th Order at 8. In particular, the Commission asks a series of questions,
7 Joint Statement of Chairman Glen R. Thomas and Commissioner Kim Pizzingrilli, In re NXX Codes Designated as Unavailable in the 724, 215, 267, 610 and 484 NPAs to be Assigned to Verizon Pennsylvania, Inc. or Released, at 2, Docket Nos. P-00961027, P-00961061 (Aug. 8, 2002).
8 Id. 6
including what is the shortest amount of time an area code split can be implemented, whether the
industry could implement an overlay but not activate it until total exhaust of the 814 NPA, and
other technical questions. Id. at 11. The OCA appreciates the Commission’s efforts to obtain technical data regarding the implementation of various area code relief alternatives. The OCA defers to the industry for those technical answers but continues to encourage the Commission to implement area code relief only when the Commission is confident that such relief is necessary and in the public interest. This includes taking all possible efforts to reclaim unused telephone numbers and to distribute numbering resources in an efficient manner.
The 814 area code is one of Pennsylvania’s original four area codes. July 29th Order at 4.
Relief planning for the 814 area code initially began in 2002 when the 2001 Number Resource
Utilization Forecast and 2001 NPA exhaust analysis revealed that the 814 NPA would exhaust
during the first quarter of 2005. Id. Consequently, industry members, in consultation with
Neustar, recommended that the Commission adopt an all services overlay to provide area code relief. Id. at 6. After reaching consensus on the NPA relief plan to recommend to the
Commission, however, the industry noted the decline in demand for numbering resources and the implementation of certain number conservation measures that may extend the life of the 814
NPA beyond the original projected exhaust date. Id. at 7. Consequently, the industry decided to
delay the filing of any petition for relief until such time that the reports indicated a more
immediate need. Id.
The OCA notes that, at the time of that prior Petition, number assignment data raised
serious questions about the utilization rates of certain NXX codes in Pennsylvania. For example,
in Comments filed on October 30, 2000 regarding the 570 NPA, the OCA pointed out that there
were 47 NXX codes, or 470,000 telephone numbers, assigned to the Wilkes Barre exchange even
7
though Wilkes Barre had a population of only 42,358 at that time. As noted by the OCA, the
largest holder of NXX codes in Wilkes Barre at that time was a company called CCCPA, Inc.
d/b/a CONNECT which had been assigned fifteen 10,000- number NXX codes in Wilkes Barre
alone. Thus, CCCPA CONNECT alone had 150,000 telephone numbers in Wilkes Barre,
enough to provide nearly four telephone numbers to every man, woman and child in the Wilkes
Barre area, even though, to OCA’s knowledge, there was no evidence that this company was
providing service to any customers in Wilkes-Barre at that time.
As noted, also at that time, the Commission took a series of steps, including thousands-
block pooling and number reclamation, to preserve our Commonwealth’s numbering resources.
As noted above, the Commission has recently petitioned the FCC for additional numbering
authority so that it can mandate thousands-block pooling in every rate center in Pennsylvania,
not just those in the top 100 metropolitan statistic areas (MSA). In that Petition, the Commission
notes that 169 out of 178 rate centers in the 814 NPA are considered “optional” for pooling
purposes.9 Thousands-block pooling, however, should be implemented in all 178 rate centers in
the 814 NPA to ensure that numbering resources are being used efficiently throughout the entire area code, not just in selected rate centers. Implementing thousands-block pooling in every rate center in the 814 area code will more efficiently use numbering resources and could prolong the life of the area code.
9 See, July 13, 2009 Petition at 7. In rate centers considered “optional” for pooling purposes, the Commission cannot require a carrier to take numbers in blocks of 1,000, instead of blocks of 10,000.
8
As the Commission is well aware, thousands-block pooling is a more efficient way to allocate numbering resources. As the Commission illustrated in its July 13th Petition to the FCC to note the efficacy of thousands-block pooling:
For example, in March 2002, the telecommunications industry had just agreed to recommend to the Pa PUC an all-services distributed overlay because the 814 NPA was projected to exhaust in 1Q2005. However, as mentioned above, 1K number pooling was implemented in the 814 NPA in August 2002. Initially, within six months of the implementation of 1K number pooling in the 814 NPA, the projected life of the 814 NPA was extended two years – from 1Q2005 to 3Q2007. A year later, or April 2004, the projected exhaust date for the 814 NPA was extended another two years or until 4Q2009. Again, in October, 2005, the 814 NPA projected exhaust date was extended to 3Q2010. Lastly, the 2006 NPA Exhaust Analysis showed that the life of the 814 area code was extended to 1Q2011.10
Simply put, thousands-block pooling works to extend the life of area codes.
Furthermore, the Commission must make sure that the numbers that already have been distributed are being used efficiently. For example, the OCA notes that in the petition filed at this docket on June 9, 2009, the industry provides a summary of NXX code usage in the 814
NPA as of April 28, 2009.11 In that summary, the industry identifies the number of NXX codes that have been assigned in the 814 NPA each month since January 2005. For the most part, the number of codes assigned each month since January 2005 is either 0, 1, 2, 3 or 4. There are three months when 5 codes were assigned and three months when 8 codes were assigned. In March
2009, however, forty-three (43) codes were assigned in that month alone. The Petition does not explain the reason for the extreme spike in demand for NXX codes in March 2009, but it is important to ensure that those 430,000 telephone numbers distributed in March 2009 alone are
10 Id. at 7-8.
11Neustar Petition at Exhibit A, attachment 2.
9
being used efficiently. The OCA submits that this issue should be thoroughly explored before a
final decision is reached on the implementation of an additional area code.
A more efficient use of numbering resources is necessary particularly since, according to
the most recent FCC reports, only 48.1% of all telephone numbers nationwide from current area
codes were assigned to customers.12 In total, Pennsylvania has assigned 48.6% of its usable
telephone numbers13 with the 814 NPA specifically having assigned 42.0% of its usable
telephone numbers.14 In contrast, some area codes in other states currently have reached
utilization levels of 77% and 75.3%.15 Any unused Pennsylvania numbering resources should be
reclaimed if they are not being used efficiently before any new area code is implemented.
Prior to ordering a new area code, the OCA recommends that the Commission ensure that all numbering resources in the 814 area code are being used efficiently through the greatest possible use of thousands-block pooling and reclaiming any unused numbers that have already been distributed.
2. An all services overlay is the preferred method of implementing a new area code for the 814 NPA if one is found to be necessary.
In its July 29th Order, the Commission seeks Comment on how to implement any new
area code, if one is found to be necessary. In particular, “the Commission is seeking comments
on the five relief alternatives submitted by [Neustar] to the industry and is open to suggestions
regarding any other potential alternative for providing relief to the 814 NPA.” July 29th Order at
12 See, Numbering Resource Utilization in the United States, Federal Communications Commission Wireline Competition Bureau Industry Analysis and Technology Division, March, 2009, at Table 4 (March 2009 Utilization Report). Report of utilization data as of June 30, 2008.
13 Id.
14 Id., at Table 6.
15 Id. New York’s area code 646 is the most utilized area code with 77.0% of numbers assigned to customers and Arizona’s area code 480 is the second most utilized area code with 75.3% of numbers assigned to customers.
10
9. The alternatives include an area code overlay and various geographic split alternatives. Id. at
App. A. The Commission further asks Commenters to consider what form of relief would create longer lasting NPAs for the 814 region and what form of area code relief is least disruptive to consumers. Id. at 10.
To the extent that the Commission determines that an additional area code is necessary, the OCA supports the industry recommendation for the implementation of an all services
overlay. The area code overlay maintains the same geographic scope of the area code but adds a
new area code to the area. The area code overlay requires all telephone calls to be made using
10-digit dialing and requires consumers to use two different area codes for local calls in their
own area. An area code overlay, however, avoids a boundary line being drawn that requires all
residential and business customers on one side of the boundary to receive a new area code and
incur the costs associated with having a new area code.
The OCA initially opposed all service overlays when first proposed for Pennsylvania
NPA’s earlier this decade. The OCA’s opposition was based on a variety of reasons, including
the competitive disadvantages that are created by giving new entrants telephone numbers
associated with a new area code that may be unfamiliar to consumers. Other disadvantages of an
overlay include the consumer burden associated with the need to reprogram all telephone
equipment to incorporate 10-digit dialing and the difficulty associated with remembering a 10-
digit phone number instead of a 7-digit phone number.
As experience has been gained with overlay area codes in other portions of the
Commonwealth and the Nation, however, concerns about these competitive and consumer issues
related to area code overlays have been alleviated or reduced. As more overlays have occurred,
consumers now are less inclined to associate an area code with a particular geographic area and
11
have become more accustomed to 10-digit dialing. This has also been accompanied by advances
in telephones themselves, where many calls now are made with the push of a single button,
rather than the dialing of seven, ten or eleven digits. Consumer outreach and education have also
accompanied area code overlays. Additionally, because wireless users often keep their same
telephone number when moving to different area codes, the area code has become less
distinctive. The competitive disadvantage in having a phone number with an area code that may
not match the traditional area code for a particular geographic location appears to be less
significant. The OCA has come to the conclusion that the disadvantages of implementing an
area code overlay are less than the disadvantages associated with implementing a new area code
via a “geographic split.” In particular, with a geographic split, approximately half of all
consumers and businesses instantly need to change their telephone number. Geographic splits
have a larger impact on a greater number of existing customers due to changes required in
customers’ existing telephone numbers.
As such, the OCA submits that the Commission should implement an all services area
code overlay but only after it is determined that such additional numbering resources are
necessary.
C. Area Code Conservation Is Important In Light Of The Extraordinary Cost Of Running Out Of Area Codes.
The OCA submits that, as the Commission considers how and when to implement any new area code in northwestern Pennsylvania, it consider not only the depletion of numbering resources within each area code but also the depletion of the overall number of area codes available for assignment in the current 10-digit dialing protocol. That is, we are not only running out of numbers within each area code; we are also running out of area codes. Once the overall number of usable area codes is depleted, the entire North American numbering plan will have to
12
be expanded, possibly to a 12-digit or 14-digit dialing protocol. Such change will cause
significant societal expense and burden. The Commission should consider the overall impact on
usable area codes when determining how and when to implement any new area code in
northwestern Pennsylvania. Conserving numbers within each area code will in turn conserve the
number of area codes needed.
When the North American Numbering Plan (NANP) was established in 1947, seventy-
eight area codes were assigned to carriers in the United States.16 In the following 42 years, thirty-six new area codes were added. In the 1990s, however, 109 new area codes were activated in the United States and, even after extensive conservation efforts by the FCC at the turn of the century, another sixty-four new area codes were activated since February 2000. As a result, the rate at which area codes have been assigned nationwide during the last two decades has been vastly greater than the number of area codes assigned during the first four decades. This pace has led the FCC to conclude that “the remaining supply of unassigned area codes is diminishing” and “a premature exhaust of area codes imposes significant costs on consumers.”17
According to Neustar, there are 800 total NPA combinations.18 Of the 800 possible code
combinations, 119 codes are unassignable because they have been set aside for special
purposes—leaving 681 assignable codes. Of the 681 assignable codes, 378 have already been
assigned—leaving 303 unassigned codes.19 Of the 303 unassigned codes, only 255 are for
16 See, March 2009 Utilization Report, supra, at 3.
17 Id.
18 NANPA 2008 Final Report, North American Numbering Plan Admin., Attachment 1 – Area Code Inventory 23, available at http://www.nanpa.com/reports/NANPA_2008AR.pdf (last visited June 22, 2009). An area code cannot begin with a “0” or a “1.”
19 Id. In addition to the 287 area codes discussed above, 91 additional area codes have been used for other purposes (i.e., toll-free calling, etc.).
13
general-purpose use; and 162 of the 255 are reserved as future geographic codes.20 That leaves a
total of 93 unassigned, unreserved, general-purpose codes for all of North America. It should be
noted that when this issue arose in 2002, it was estimated that expanding the North American
Numbering Plan once total exhaustion arrives will cost between $50 billion and $150 billion
dollars.21
As such, the Commission should consider the overall impact on usable area codes when
determining how and when to implement any new area code in northwestern Pennsylvania.
IV. CONCLUSION
WHEREFORE, the Pennsylvania Office of Consumer Advocate respectfully submits that
the Honorable Pennsylvania Public Utility Commission consider these Comments as it
determines what relief should be implemented for the 814 NPA. The Commission has
effectively and judiciously directed area code relief throughout Pennsylvania during the past
decade and should continue to do so. Therefore, the Commission should first ensure that
numbering resources are currently being used efficiently throughout the 814 NPA and reclaim
those that are not. If it is determined that an additional area code is needed, the OCA concurs
with the industry recommendation that an area code overlay should be implemented. Continued
efficiency and scrutiny is appropriate and in the public interest, particularly given the extreme
expense and burden of running out of area codes.
20 Id.
21 Area Code Exhaustion: What are the Solutions?, Hearing Before the Subcomm. on Telecomms. and the Internet of the H. Comm. on Energy and Commerce, 107th Cong. 13 (2002) (statement of Dorothy T. Atwood, Chief, Wireline Competition Bureau, Fed. Commc’n Comm’n). No more recent estimate was identified.
14
Respectfully Submitted,
______Joel H. Cheskis, Esquire Assistant Consumer Advocate Pa. Attorney ID # 81617
Counsel for: Irwin A. Popowsky Consumer Advocate
Office of Consumer Advocate 555 Walnut Street 5th Floor, Forum Place Harrisburg, PA 17101-1923 Phone: (717) 783-5048 Fax: (717) 783-7152
Dated: September 8, 2009 117338
15