30 Seconds with the
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  The North American Numbering Plan: Who Knew? The North American Numbering Plan (NANP) is the numbering plan for the public switched telephone network for Canada, the US and its territories, and the Caribbean. The North American Numbering Plan Administration (NANPA) is the body that oversees this integrated telephone numbering plan that serves the North American countries that share its resources. The NANPA is not a regulatory body. Rather, it adheres to regulatory directives and industry-developed guidelines to make assignment decisions. The Federal Communications Commission (FCC) defines NANPA's responsibilities and its comprehensive technical requirements are drafted by the telecommunications industry and approved by the FCC. NANP numbers are ten-digit numbers consisting of a three-digit Numbering Plan Area (NPA) code, commonly called an area code, followed by a seven-digit local number. The format is usually represented as NXX-NXX-XXXX where N is any digit from 2 through 9 and X is any digit from 0 through 9. The 19 countries that use the NANP are: the United States and its territories; Canada; Bermuda; Anguilla, Antigua & Barbuda; the Bahamas; Barbados; the British Virgin Islands; the Cayman Islands; Dominica; the Dominican Republic; Grenada; Jamaica; Montserrat; St. Kitts and Nevis; St. Lucia; St. Vincent and the Grenadines; Trinidad and Tobago; and, Turks & Caicos. |
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| Contact Us
Live Customer Care Monday through Friday: 7:00 a.m. - 5:00 p.m. Pacific time. Phone: 1-800-352-4340 Fax: 1-888-295-7066 Email: care@americanfone.com |
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 Summer
travel destinations are typically peaceful and bucolic. Of course,
often what allows for the quiet of the country, the mountains or the
remote beaches that so many of us love, is the limited access to
some of the technology that contributes to the frenzy of our
day-to-day lives. As you bask in the glory of nature, more likely
than not, you will not be in range of a cellular network and so will
not be able to use your mobile phone.  That contemporary
convenience that we all love to hate will fail you once again. To
safeguard against being completely out of touch, we recommend that
make sure you have set up your AmericanFone Calling Cards. Take them
with you wherever you go. So long as you have access to a good
old-fashioned, hard-wired telephone, you will also have access to
great, low Long Distance rates, and your loved ones. |
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Your Vote is a terrible thing to waste...  Have you registered? According to the League of Women Voters, the first test of a healthy democracy is voter turnout. America is about government by the people for the people, or "consent of the governed." A democracy is significantly weakened when fewer than half of its eligible voters are making decisions that affect the entire population. In general, the United States sees a higher voter turnout in presidential election years than in non-presidential election years. Still, according to the US Census Bureau, only 70 percent of US citizens of voting age are actually registered to vote and only 60 percent of US citizens actually voted on our last presidential election. Interestingly, the Federal Elections Committee's slightly different estimates showed that only 51 percent of the voting age public voted. It is encouraging that both studies show that while small, a majority of voting age citizens do vote. Still, our founders envisioned that all citizens would participate in electing our government. That may be a tall order, but to see one-third to almost half of voting age citizens shirking their responsibility to our country – and to us, their fellow citizens who want all opinions in the pot – is not the rosiest of pictures. A few cautions regarding these statistics: Not all residents of the United States are eligible to vote. In order to vote in a United States election, a person must be a US citizen of voting age (over 18) and meet the resident requirements in their state of residence. (Eligibility to vote is governed by the states rather than the federal government.) In addition, voting age US citizens are ineligible to vote if they are serving sentences in penal institutions or have been committed to mental hospitals or other such institutions. Further, in some states, in particular North Dakota, no formal voter registration is required. Voters appear at the polls on Election Day and provide appropriate identification. For all states that allow on-site registration as well, the entire voting age population is considered registered. If you want your preferred candidate to win, if you want particular issues to be addressed in alignment with your beliefs, you must act toward that end by getting out and casting your vote. If you want to double your voting power, encourage someone who shares your beliefs to get out to the polls and vote. And many say, if you want to voice disapproval when you disagree with something the government does, you had better be able to claim you voted if you want your complaint to be justifiable. We all bear responsibility for shaping the mechanism that governs our freedom of speech and all of the other freedoms America affords us. Sometimes things go the way we would like, sometimes they don't. But, like the lottery, you have to be in it to win it. In most states, you must be registered prior to Election Day in order to be eligible to vote. Click here or on the link above to get your state's registration deadline, forms, and additional voter information. Election Day is November 2, 2004. Have you registered? |
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California, Mississippi Introduce New Area Codes
 The North American Numbering Plan
Administration (NANPA) has announced implementation of two new area
codes this summer. The area of southern California currently served
by the 909 area code will be split and the southern region of that
area will be served by the new, 951 area code. Central Mississippi
is introducing a second area code, 769, into the area currently
served by the 601 area code. Both area codes will serve that entire
region. Both states are introducing the new area codes with a ‘permissive dialing’ phase. During this period, numbers can be dialed based on either the old or the new area code and the system will recognize both interchangeably. At the conclusion of the permissive dialing phase, the new area codes will be mandatory. Callers dialing the old area codes will get a recording informing them of the change. The recorded message will be in place for several months. The SoCal Split As of July 17, 2004 communities in the southwest portion of San Bernardino County, the western portion of Riverside County and a small portion of Los Angeles County are officially part of the 951 area code. By splitting the 909 area code region in two, the members of both the 909 and the 951 region can continue to dial only seven digits (the number without 1+ or an area code) when making local calls. The also system recognizes 10-digit dialing (1+area code + number) for local calls but does not require it.
The permissive dialing phase is scheduled to end at 12:01 AM Pacific Time on October 30, 2004. In anticipation the switch, you may want to
Mississippi Maintains Numbers, Adds Digits to Dialing As of July 19, 2004, permissive dialing of 10-digit numbers began in the 601 area code region of Central Mississippi. Overlaying the new area code allows introduction of additional area codes into an existing local area and nobody in the region has to change their phone number or reprint their stationery, business cards, marketing collateral and the like. The trade-off is that 10-digit dialing is required for local calls as well as Long Distance calls. The seven-month permissive dialing period will allow customers to adjust to the new dialing requirements. If you dial a seven-digit number after that time, a recording will instruct you to redial the full, 10-digit number. The end of the permissive dialing phase is scheduled for 12:01 AM Central Time, March 14, 2005. In anticipation the change you may want to
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