Press Release

Public Meetings Scheduled in Central Valley (559 Calling Area)

WASHINGTON, D.C. (May 31, 2000) - Public meetings will be held June 7 and 8, 2000 to receive public comments regarding upcoming area code relief in the greater Fresno area, a central portion of California, according to Neustar, Inc., which serves as the North American Numbering Plan Administration (NANPA).

Phone customers in the 559 area code, which includes most of Fresno, Kings, Madera and Tulare counties could receive a new area code as early as March 2002. The 559 area code includes cities and communities such as Fresno, Hanford, Lindsay, Madera, Porterville and Visalia. Customers are invited to share their views regarding proposed area code relief plans during the public meetings, which are scheduled as follows:

WEDNESDAY, June 7, 2000
1:00 p.m.
VISALIA
City Council Chambers
707 W. Acequia
Visalia, CA

WEDNESDAY, June 7, 2000
7:00 p.m.
PORTERVILLE
City Council Chambers
291 N. Main Street
Porterville, CA

THURSDAY, June 8, 2000
1:00 p.m.
FRESNO
City Council Chambers
2600 Fresno Street
Fresno, CA

In December 1999, NANPA announced that area code relief would be needed for the 559 area code within the next 27 months. The 559 area code is projected to run out of available prefix codes during the first quarter of 2003 . 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.

Visit NANPA online at www.nanpa.com.

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