Today: FCC Open Internet Enhanced Transparency Rule Exemption, Massachusetts 911 Funding, New Jersey Considers NPA, Pennsylvania Modifies NPA Schedule, NARUC Names New Member.

FCC Open Internet Enhanced Transparency Rule Exemption

FCC Chairman Ajit Pai released a statement saying that he had circulated and voted for an order that will exempt providers with no more than 250,000 subscribers from the FCC’s Open Internet enhanced transparency rule for five years.  (The previous exemption, which expired in December 2016, was for providers with 100,000 or fewer broadband connections as measured by their most recent FCC Form 477, aggregated over all of the providers’ affiliates.)  Chairman Pai said that he was authorized by Commissioner O’Rielly to say that Commissioner O’Rielly has also voted for the item.

Massachusetts 911 Funding

The MA State 911 Department petitioned the DTC for approval of 2017 expenditures including an increase of 10% or more for each of the following: (1) Fiscal Year (FY) 2017 Expenditures; (2) the FY 2018 Development Grant amount; (3) the FY 2018 Incentive Grant amount for the regional emergency communications center category; and (4) the FY 2018 Incentive Grant amount for the public safety answering point category.  The DTC will investigate the 911 Department request as a formal adjudicatory proceeding.  A public hearing will take place on February 16, 2017.  Written comments will be accepted until February 14, 2017. 

New Jersey Considers New NPA

The New Jersey Board of Public Utilities said it will begin the process of considering a request filed by Neustar seeking the implementation of an all services distributed overlay to provide area code relief for the 609 Numbering Plan Area (NPA).  The Board will accept written comments until close of business on February 27, 2017.  A public hearing will be held on February 23, 2017. 

Pennsylvania Modifies NPA Schedule

In November 2016, Neustar assigned an additional overlay area code, 223, to the existing 717 area code.  On January 19, 2017, the PUC modified the implementation schedule for the 223 overlay plan.  All NXX code holders in Pennsylvania are directed to complete all network preparation to their systems that is necessary to implement the new overlay NPA over the existing 717 NPA no later than March 4, 2017, the start of the permissive 10-digit dialing and customer education period.  TMI Briefing Service subscribers see Briefings dated 1/20/17, 11/11/16, and 10/28/16. 

NARUC Names New Member

Florida PSC Commissioner Ronald Brisé was recently appointed to the National Association of Regulatory Utility Commissioners (NARUC) Executive Committee by NARUC President Robert F. Powelson.  “Commissioner Brisé’s active service on this Committee is important to the cause of strengthening effective public utility regulation,” President Powelson said.