Central Office Codes

Reclamation Process

Overview

The FCC Number Resource Optimization Order (NRO) made several significant changes to the central office code reclamation process (doc). Specifically, it took away the authority of the INC (Industry Numbering Committee) to make central office code reclamation decisions, as well as NANPA's authority to grant time extensions to code holders to verify that their central office codes are in service. Both of these responsibilities were placed with the state regulatory commissions. The FCC will make central office code reclamation decisions in states where the state regulatory commissions have opted not to exercise this authority.

As a result of the FCC NRO Order, the Central Office Code Assignment Guidelines were amended to state that a code assigned should be placed in service 6 months after the original effective date returned on the Part 3 and entered on the ACD screen in Telcordia® Business Integrated Routing and Rating Database System (BIRRDS), and that NANPA must initiate reclamation within 60 days after that 6-month period has elapsed.

Initiation of Reclamation - NANPA Responsibilities

NANPA will receive and process Part 4 notices received from code holders during the 6-month period following the original effective date returned on the Part 3 and entered on the ACD screen in BIRRDS. Receipt of a Part 4 from a code holder certifies that the code has been placed in service. The FCC NRO Order defined 'in service' as "a code or block for which local routing information has been input to inconectiv's LERG Routing Guide and the carrier has begun to activate and assign numbers within the NXX code or NXX-X block to end users." No further action or follow up is required once a code holder submits a Part 4.

After the 6-month due date, the NANP Administration System (NAS) will not allow the code holder to submit a Part 4. The code holder will be required to submit the Part 4 to the appropriate state commission or the FCC if the state does not participate in the code reclamation process. If NANPA receives a Part 4 via email or fax after the 6-month period, the Part 4 will be rejected and the code holder will be directed to submit the Part 4 to the appropriate regulatory body for approval.

If a Part 4 has not been received by NANPA during the first five months following the original effective date issued on the Part 3, NANPA will send a Reminder Notice to the code holder. The notice will instruct the code holder to do one of the following prior to the end of the 6-month period:

• If the code is in a non-pooling area, submit a Part 4 to NANPA;
• If the code is in a pooling area, and the code was assigned prior to the implementation of pooling, submit the Part 4 to NANPA;
• If the code is in a pooling area, and the code was assigned after the implementation of pooling, submit the Part 4 to the Pooling Administrator; or
• If the code is no longer needed or not in service, return the code by submitting a Part 1

During the first ten (10) calendar days of each month, NANPA will send a spreadsheet of all existing and new delinquent codes (as of the last day of the prior month) to the appropriate state commissions. For states that have declined their reclamation authority, their spreadsheets will be sent to the FCC. The spreadsheet will contain the following information for each code:

• NPA-NXX
• Date that the reminder notice was sent
• Original effective date issued on the Part 3
• Part 4 Due Date
• Reclamation Status
• Company name
• OCN

Additionally, NANPA will provide to the state commissions/FCC a current extract from its database of all code holders in their respective areas. This list will contain the following information:

• Company name
• OCN(s)
• Contact name
• Contact voice and facsimile numbers
• Contact e-mail address (when available)
• Mailing address

There may be instances whereby a code holder submits a past-due Part 4 to the state commission/FCC prior to NANPA forwarding the monthly Reclamation List. In this instance, the code for which the Part 4 is submitted may not appear on any previous Reclamation List. In this situation, the state commission/FCC should forward the Part 4 to NANPA with the direction for NANPA to accept the Part 4.

IMPORTANT: It should be noted that the Reclamation List contains those NPA-NXXs that NANPA has not received a Part 4. The appearance of a code on this list should not be interpreted to mean that the code was not placed in service. The code could have been placed into service but the code holder failed to provide the Part 4 in the prescribed time frame.

Reclamation Management - FCC/State Commission Responsibilities

Each state commission and the FCC will appoint a single point of contact to work with NANPA and code holders on reclamation issues. The contact will work cooperatively with NANPA to manage the list.

Upon receipt of the Reclamation List form NANPA, the state commission/FCC contact will review and investigate the codes in which the Part 4 is delinquent.

As state above, because Reclamation Lists are sent out on a monthly basis, some delinquent Part 4s received by the state commissions or FCC may not appear on the current list. For those delinquent Part 4s, the state commission or FCC will decide whether to approve. If approved, the state commission/FCC contact will notify NANPA and forward a copy of the Part 4. NANPA will input the Part 4 into NAS.

On or before the last business day of each calendar month, the state and FCC contact will provide NANPA with a status report for all codes remaining under their control. Each code should be assigned one of the following three categories:

Part 4 received (REC)

For each such code, the state regulatory commission/FCC contact should provide a copy of the completed Part 4 form to NANPA for their records. NANPA will update its records to indicate that the code is in service. This code is considered resolved and will be removed from the Reclamation List. No further action will be taken on the code.

Pending (PEN)

A code is placed in this category if investigation is still in progress, or if the state regulatory commission/FCC grants the code holder an extension. If an extension is granted, the state commission/FCC will have full responsibility of tracking and follow-up. Further, in the case of an extension, the state regulatory commission/FCC must notify NANPA so that NANPA can modify its records to permit the code holder to submit a Part 4 via NAS.

Reclaim the code (RCL)

By placing a code in this category, the state regulatory commission/FCC indicates that dialogue with the code holder is complete and instructs NANPA to reclaim the code. NANPA will provide necessary documentation to Telcordia to process the disconnect of the code in LERG within 10 business days of receipt of this notice from the state regulatory commission/FCC.

The disconnect interval will be the industry-standard notification period of 45 calendar days. NANPA will send a letter to the code holder advising them of the effective date of the disconnect of the code, and further advise them that the code may be reassigned at any point after that date.