Press Release

Public Meetings Scheduled for 949 Area Code Relief in Southern California

WASHINGTON, D.C. (March 15, 2000) -Public meetings will be held March 22 and 23 to receive public comments regarding upcoming area code relief in the 949 area code in Southern California, according to Neustar, Inc., which serves as the North America Numbering Plan Administrator (NANPA).

Phone customers in the 949 area code, which includes the southern portion of Orange County, could receive a new area code as early as first quarter 2002. The 949 area code includes cities and communities such as Aliso, Viejo, Balboa, Capistrano Beach, Corona del Mar, Dana Point, El Toro, Emerald Bay, Laguna Beach, Leisure World, Mission Viejo, Newport Beach, Rancho Santa Margarita, San Clemente, Trabuco Canyon, Woodbridge, part of Costa Mesa and most of Irvine.

Customers are invited to share their views regarding proposed area code relief plans during the public meetings, which are scheduled as follows:

Wednesday, March 22, 2000:
LAKE FOREST
1:00 p.m.
City Council Chambers
23161 Lake Center Drive, Suite 220
Lake Forest, CA 92630

SAN JUAN CAPISTRANO
7:00 p.m.
Community Center
25925 Camino Del Avion
San Juan Capistrano, CA 92675

Thursday, March 23, 2000:
LAGUNA BEACH
10:00 a.m.
City Council Chambers
505 Forest Avenue
Laguna Beach, CA 92651

In September, NANPA announced that area code relief would be needed for the 949 area code within 30 months. The 949 area code is projected to run out of available prefix codes during the 4th quarter of 2002. This is due, in part, to an increase in competition in the local phone service market, the growing demand by the public for additional telephone numbers, and a technical requirement in the phone network that allocates phone numbers in blocks of 10,000.

The area code relief plans will not affect the cost of placing a call.

Following the public meetings, NANPA officials will meet with the telecommunications industry to review the public input before forwarding the industry's recommendation to the California Public Utilities Commission, which has final approval for the plan.

A telecommunications industry group, comprised of various industry segments, collectively develops area code relief plans for the state of California. Relief activities for the state of California are administered by Neustar, Inc., which was selected by the FCC to serve as the NANPA. NANPA is a neutral, third-party administrator that works with the telecommunications industry in developing area code relief plans. NANPA also oversees the assignment of area codes, three-digit central office codes, carrier identification codes, and other numbering resources throughout the United States, Canada, Bermuda and 16 Caribbean countries.

For media inquiries, please contact Bill Stern, spokesman for the North American Numbering Plan Administration, at 202-533-2648.