Press Release

New Area Code Assigned to Long Island's 516 Calling Area
631 Will Be New Area Code in Geographic Split Plan

WASHINGTON, D.C. (May 19, 1999) — The North American Numbering Plan Administration (NANPA) announced today that New York's Long Island will receive the new 631 area code, as part of the geographic split plan approved recently by the New York Public Service Commission.

Long Island's Suffolk County will receive the 631 area code, while phone customers in Nassau County will maintain the 516 area code. The boundaries of the geographic split fall along Suffolk and Nassau County lines. This is the first new area code added in Long Island since 516 was placed into service in 1951.

The assignment of the new 631 area code for Suffolk County comes after the State's Public Service Commission approved a geographic split plan for area code relief for Long Island last month.

Cities and communities that will change to 631 include Commack, Huntington Station, Farmingdale, Ronkonkoma, and South Hampton, while Glen Cove, Valley Stream, Oyster Bay and Massapequa will remain in the 516 calling area.

Once the new area code is implemented, calls made between Nassau and Suffolk counties will require 1+10 digit dialing (1+area code+phone number). However, the introduction of the 631 area code will not affect the price of telephone calls. Local calls will remain local calls regardless of the area code dialed.

Because the 516/631 area code relief plan falls along the Suffolk and Nassau county line, several exchanges will be found in both counties. For example, if a phone customer has the 694 exchange and lives in Suffolk County, they will switch to the new 631area code; however, a 694 phone customer in Nassau County will retain the 516 area code. On the attached list of exchanges for the new 631 area code, and those remaining in 516, the shared codes are marked with an asterisk (*).

New phone numbers will be assigned in the 631 area code beginning in the spring of 2000.

Wayne Milby, NANPA's senior area code relief planner for the Eastern Region, which includes New York, said the introduction of the new 631 area code is needed to meet the rapidly growing demand for additional telephone numbers in the 516 area code.

"The demand for additional telephone numbers has been driven by several factors including an increase in Long Island's population and healthy economic conditions," Milby said. "Businesses are also expanding and needing additional telephone numbers, as well as a need for second and third phone lines in the home, and for more wireless services." Another factor is an increase in local telephone service competition, Milby added.

When switching to or adding a new area code, Milby said there are several items customers should remember including:

• Changing stationery, business cards and advertising to reflect the correct area code if not already shown.
• Updating fax machine group calling lists.
• Reprogramming speed dialers, auto dialers, alarms and PBX (private phone systems)
• Reprogramming out-dial lists on personal computers.
• Updating or reprogramming private-dial entry access systems.

A telecommunications industry group, comprised of various industry segments, collectively develops area code relief plans for New York State. Area code relief activities for the 516 and 631 area codes are administered by the Communications Industry Services group of NeuStar, Inc., which was selected by the Federal Communications Commission (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 and 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.

View NXX Codes in the 516 NPA

View NXX Codes in the 631 NPA

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