[Code of Federal Regulations]
[Title 47, Volume 3]
[Revised as of October 1, 2005]
From the U.S. Government Printing Office via GPO Access
[CITE: 47CFR52.19]

[Page 82-84]
 
                       TITLE 47--TELECOMMUNICATION
 
        CHAPTER I--FEDERAL COMMUNICATIONS COMMISSION (CONTINUED)
 
PART 52_NUMBERING--Table of Contents
 
                        Subpart B_Administration
 
Sec. 52.19  Area code relief.

    (a) State commissions may resolve matters involving the introduction 
of new area codes within their states. Such matters may include, but are 
not limited to: Directing whether area code relief will take the form of 
a geographic split, an overlay area code, or a boundary realignment; 
establishing new area code boundaries; establishing

[[Page 83]]

necessary dates for the implementation of area code relief plans; and 
directing public education efforts regarding area code changes.
    (b) State commissions may perform any or all functions related to 
initiation and development of area code relief plans, so long as they 
act consistently with the guidelines enumerated in this part, and 
subject to paragraph (b)(2) of this section. For the purposes of this 
paragraph, initiation and development of area code relief planning 
encompasses all functions related to the implementation of new area 
codes that were performed by central office code administrators prior to 
February 8, 1996. Such functions may include: declaring that the area 
code relief planning process should begin; convening and conducting 
meetings to which the telecommunications industry and the public are 
invited on area code relief for a particular area code; and developing 
the details of a proposed area code relief plan or plans.
    (1) The entity or entities designated by the Commission to serve as 
central office code administrator(s) shall initiate and develop area 
code relief plans for each area code in each state that has not notified 
such entity or entities, pursuant to paragraph (b)(2) of this section, 
that the state will handle such functions.
    (2) Pursuant to paragraph (b)(1) of this section, a state commission 
must notify the entity or entities designated by the Commission to serve 
as central office code administrator(s) for its state that such state 
commission intends to perform matters related to initiation and 
development of area code relief planning efforts in its state. 
Notification shall be written and shall include a description of the 
specific functions the state commission intends to perform. Where the 
NANP Administrator serves as the central office code administrator, such 
notification must be made within 120 days of the selection of the NANP 
Administrator.
    (c) New area codes may be introduced through the use of:
    (1) A geographic area code split, which occurs when the geographic 
area served by an area code in which there are few or no central office 
codes left for assignment is split into two or more geographic parts;
    (2) An area code boundary realignment, which occurs when the 
boundary lines between two adjacent area codes are shifted to allow the 
transfer of some central office codes from an area code for which 
central office codes remain unassigned to an area code for which few or 
no central office codes are left for assignment; or
    (3) An all services area code overlay, which occurs when a new area 
code is introduced to serve the same geographic area as one or more 
existing area code(s), subject to the following conditions:
    (i) No all services area code overlay may be implemented unless all 
numbering resources in the new overlay area code are assigned to those 
entities requesting assignment on a first-come, first-serve basis, 
regardless of the identity of, technology used by, or type of service 
provided by that entity, except to the extent that a technology- or 
service-specific overlay is authorized by the Commission. No group of 
telecommunications carriers shall be excluded from assignment of 
numbering resources in the existing area code, or be assigned such 
resources only from the all services overlay area code, based solely on 
that group's provision of a specific type of telecommunications service 
or use of a particular technology; and
    (ii) No area code overlay may be implemented unless there exists, at 
the time of implementation, mandatory ten-digit dialing for every 
telephone call within and between all area codes in the geographic area 
covered by the overlay area code.
    (4) A technology-specific or service-specific overlay, which occurs 
when a new area code is introduced to serve the same geographic area as 
one or more existing area code(s) and numbering resources in the new 
area code overlay are assigned to a specific technology(ies) or 
service(s). State commissions may not implement a technology-specific or 
service-specific overlay without express authority from the Commission.

[61 FR 47353, Sept. 6, 1996, as amended at 64 FR 63617, Nov. 16, 1998; 
64 FR 62984, Nov. 18, 1999; 67 FR 6434, Feb. 12, 2002]

[[Page 84]]


    Effective Date Note: At 67 FR 6434, Feb. 12, 2002, Sec. 52.19 was 
amended by revising paragraph (c)(3)(i) and adding paragraph (c)(4). 
These paragraphs contain information collection requirements and will 
not become effective until approval has been given by the Office of 
Management and Budget.