[Federal Register Volume 82, Number 226 (Monday, November 27, 2017)]
[Proposed Rules]
[Pages 55970-55984]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2017-25458]


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FEDERAL COMMUNICATIONS COMMISSION

47 CFR Parts 51 and 52

[WC Docket No. 17-244, WC Docket No. 13-97; FCC 17-133]


Nationwide Number Portability; Numbering Policies for Modern 
Communications

AGENCY: Federal Communications Commission.

ACTION: Proposed rule.

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SUMMARY: In this document, the Commission seeks comment on how best to 
move toward complete nationwide number portability (NNP) to promote 
competition among all service providers. The NPRM proposes to eliminate 
the N-1 query requirement, and also proposes to forbear from the 
dialing parity requirements for competitive LECs that remain after the 
2015 USTelecom Forbearance Order as they apply to interexchange 
services. The NPRM asserts these changes will remove regulatory 
barriers to NNP and better reflect the competitive realities of today's 
marketplace. The NOI seeks to refresh the record in the 2013 Future of 
Numbering NOI. It also seeks comment on four NNP models proposed by 
ATIS: Nationwide implementation of local routing numbers (LRNs); non-
Geographic LRNs (NGLRNs); commercial agreements; and iconectiv's GR-
2982-CORE. The NOI finally seeks comment on the implications of these 
proposals as they relate to public safety, access by individuals with 
disabilities, tariffs, and intercarrier compensation.

DATES: Comments are due on or before December 27, 2017, and reply 
comments are due on or before January 26, 2018. Written comments on the 
Paperwork Reduction Act proposed information collection requirements 
must be submitted by the public, Office of Management and Budget (OMB), 
and other interested parties on or before January 26, 2018.

ADDRESSES: You may submit comments, identified by both WC Docket No. 
17-244, and WC Docket No. 13-97 by any of the following methods:
     Federal Communications Commission's Web site: http://

[[Page 55971]]

apps.fcc.gov/ecfs/. Follow the instructions for submitting comments.
     Mail: Parties who choose to file by paper must file an 
original and one copy of each filing. If more than one docket or 
rulemaking number appears in the caption of this proceeding, filers 
must submit two additional copies for each additional docket or 
rulemaking number. Filings can be sent by hand or messenger delivery, 
by commercial overnight courier, or by first-class or overnight U.S. 
Postal Service mail. All filings must be addressed to the Commission's 
Secretary, Office of the Secretary, Federal Communications Commission. 
All hand-delivered or messenger-delivered paper filings for the 
Commission's Secretary must be delivered to FCC Headquarters at 445 
12th St. SW., Room TW-A325, Washington, DC 20554. The filing hours are 
8:00 a.m. to 7:00 p.m. All hand deliveries must be held together with 
rubber bands or fasteners. Any envelopes and boxes must be disposed of 
before entering the building. Commercial overnight mail (other than 
U.S. Postal Service Express Mail and Priority Mail) must be sent to 
9050 Junction Drive, Annapolis Junction, MD 20701. U.S. Postal Service 
first-class, Express, and Priority mail must be addressed to 445 12th 
Street SW., Washington, DC 20554.
     People with Disabilities: To request materials in 
accessible formats for people with disabilities (Braille, large print, 
electronic files, audio format), send an email to [email protected] or 
call the Consumer & Governmental Affairs Bureau at 202-418-0530 
(voice), 202-418-0432 (TTY).
    For detailed instructions for submitting comments and additional 
information on the rulemaking process, see the SUPPLEMENTARY 
INFORMATION section of this document. In addition to filing comments 
with the Secretary, a copy of any comments on the Paperwork Reduction 
Act information collection requirements contained herein should be 
submitted to the Federal Communications Commission via email to 
[email protected] and to Nicole Ongele, Federal Communications Commission, 
via email to [email protected].

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Wireline Competition Bureau, 
Competition Policy Division, Sherwin Siy, at (202) 418-2783, or 
[email protected]. For additional information concerning the 
Paperwork Reduction Act information collection requirements contained 
in this document, send an email to [email protected] or contact Nicole Ongele 
at (202) 418-2991.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: This is a summary of the Commission's Notice 
of Proposed Rulemaking (NPRM) in WC Docket No. 17-244, and CC Docket 
No. 13-97, adopted October 24, 2017, and released October 26, 2017. The 
full text of this document is available for public inspection during 
regular business hours in the FCC Reference Information Center, Portals 
II, 445 12th Street SW., Room CY-A257, Washington, DC 20554. It is 
available on the Commission's Web site at https://www.fcc.gov/document/fcc-seeks-comment-moving-toward-nationwide-number-portability-0. 
Pursuant to sections 1.415 and 1.419 of the Commission's rules, 47 CFR 
1.415, 1.419, interested parties may file comments and reply comments 
on or before the dates indicated on the first page of this document. 
Comments may be filed using the Commission's Electronic Comment Filing 
System (ECFS). See Electronic Filing of Documents in Rulemaking 
Proceedings, 63 FR 24121 (1998), http://www.fcc.gov/Bureaus/OGC/Orders/1998/fcc98056.pdf.
     Electronic Filers: Comments may be filed electronically 
using the Internet by accessing the ECFS: https://www.fcc.gov/ecfs/.
     Paper Filers: Parties who choose to file by paper must 
file an original and one copy of each filing. If more than one docket 
or rulemaking number appears in the caption of this proceeding, filers 
must submit two additional copies for each additional docket or 
rulemaking number. Filings can be sent by hand or messenger delivery, 
by commercial overnight courier, or by first-class or overnight U.S. 
Postal Service mail. All filings must be addressed to the Commission's 
Secretary, Office of the Secretary, Federal Communications Commission. 
All hand-delivered or messenger-delivered paper filings for the 
Commission's Secretary must be delivered to FCC Headquarters at 445 
12th St. SW., Room TW-A325, Washington, DC 20554. The filing hours are 
8:00 a.m. to 7:00 p.m. All hand deliveries must be held together with 
rubber bands or fasteners. Any envelopes and boxes must be disposed of 
before entering the building. Commercial overnight mail (other than 
U.S. Postal Service Express Mail and Priority Mail) must be sent to 
9050 Junction Drive, Annapolis Junction, MD 20701. U.S. Postal Service 
first-class, Express, and Priority mail must be addressed to 445 12th 
Street SW., Washington, DC 20554.
     People with Disabilities: To request materials in 
accessible formats for people with disabilities (Braille, large print, 
electronic files, audio format), send an email to [email protected] or 
call the Consumer & Governmental Affairs Bureau at 202-418-0530 
(voice), 202-418-0432 (TTY).

Synopsis

I. Introduction

    1. Telephone numbers continue to serve as important identifiers for 
reaching family and friends, businesses, and other key contacts. 
Therefore, many individuals and businesses value their telephone 
numbers and the ability to keep them--whether changing service 
providers, moving from one neighborhood to another, or relocating 
across the country.
    2. Currently, consumers and businesses can keep their telephone 
numbers when changing service providers--wireline-to-wireline, 
wireless-to-wireless, and wireline-to-wireless and the reverse--when 
they move locally. This local number portability (LNP) benefits 
consumers and promotes competition. But consumers cannot uniformly keep 
their traditional wireline numbers or their mobile numbers when they 
move long distance. The ability to keep your telephone number when 
switching your wireline or wireless service provider may depend on 
whether the service provider to whom you want to switch is a nationwide 
service provider. This limitation not only confuses and inconveniences 
consumers, it harms the ability of small or regional carriers to 
compete, undermining a core principle of number portability--
competition.
    3. In this Notice of Proposed Rulemaking (NPRM) and Notice of 
Inquiry (NOI), the Commission seeks comment on how best to move toward 
complete nationwide number portability to promote competition between 
all service providers, regardless of size or type of service (wireline 
or wireless). We also explore how technical aspects of our current LNP 
and dialing parity rules hinder the efficient routing of calls 
throughout the network, causing inefficiencies and delays.

II. Background

A. Overview

    4. The Commission has plenary authority over numbering matters. 
Section 251(e) of the Act of 1934, as amended (the Act) gives the 
Commission exclusive jurisdiction over the North American Numbering 
Plan (NANP) and related telephone numbering issues in the United 
States. Section 251(b)(2) of the Act requires local exchange carriers 
(LECs) to ``provide, to the extent technically feasible, number 
portability in

[[Page 55972]]

accordance with requirements prescribed by the Commission.'' Together, 
these portions of the Act give the Commission the authority not only to 
require ``number portability,'' which allows users to retain telephone 
numbers at the same location, but also to encourage ``location 
portability,'' allowing consumers to retain their telephone numbers 
when changing their location. Ensuring that telephone numbers do not 
act as barriers to competition between carriers of various sizes and 
technologies is well within our statutory authority. The Commission has 
created rules for local number portability and rules requiring that 
local number portability be available for wireless and interconnected 
Voice over Internet Protocol (VoIP) customers. A ``rate center'' is a 
geographic area that is used to determine whether a call is local or 
toll. This type of unlimited number portability--allowing consumers to 
port any telephone number anywhere--has been referred to as 
``nationwide number portability'' (NNP) or ``non-geographic number 
portability'' (NGNP).
    5. A wireless user may currently have more opportunities than a 
wireline user when it comes to number porting. But even among wireless 
competitors, smaller rural and regional carriers are at a disadvantage 
versus their nationwide competitors. Wireless-to-wireless porting is 
only possible if the ported-to wireless carrier has a facilities-based 
presence in the porting customer's original geographic location, 
placing smaller, non-nationwide carriers at a disadvantage. Similarly, 
existing technical strictures prevent customers from porting their 
numbers from wireless-to-wireline services, should a consumer want to 
do so, unless the ported-to wireline service provider happens to have a 
presence in the same rate center as the customer's number. This 
requirement naturally limits the ability of LECs to port-in numbers 
from wireless services, and will affect any toll or long-distance 
charges or other distance-sensitive costs for transiting the Public 
Switched Telephone Network (PSTN) portion of the call path, placing 
these local wireline carriers at a disadvantage when it comes to 
competing for consumers.
    6. An interconnected Voice over Internet Protocol (VoIP) user is 
likewise limited in terms of portability. While there is no 
technologically-inherent restriction on location of use if connectivity 
is supported via the Internet (or via a dedicated network that can 
connect to it), calls to and from the PSTN are routed through the rate 
center where the telephone number is assigned as a local number. This 
means that the rate center ``location'' of the number determines the 
location and thus the available LECs to which a customer can port the 
number. This reduced flexibility and choice also disadvantages LEC over 
providers of other telephony services.
    7. Many consumers are thus still limited to local number 
portability, and interest in NNP remains high. Government and private 
stakeholders have explored possibilities for implementing NNP in 
various forums. In July 2015, the U.S. House of Representatives 
Committee on Energy and Commerce (the Committee) requested that the 
Commission expeditiously support nationwide number portability, noting 
that ``[c]onsumers overwhelmingly prefer to keep their numbers when 
they switch carriers.'' The Committee further indicated that the 
distinction within the number portability rules places non-nationwide 
providers at a competitive disadvantage and could result in consumer 
confusion when attempting to switch providers.
    8. The Competitive Carriers Association (CCA) subsequently asserted 
that ``CCA's rural and regional members have experienced problems with 
porting-in wireless numbers from disparate parts of the country.'' CCA 
further asserts that, as a result, non-nationwide carriers are placed 
at a competitive disadvantage compared to their nationwide counterparts 
who are able to port-in numbers regardless of location. CCA expressed 
that number portability ``helps to expand competition by allowing 
consumers to choose carriers that offer lower prices and innovative 
product and service offerings, and these public interest benefits are 
diminished when non-nationwide carriers do not have the same capability 
as nationwide carriers.''
    9. On May 16, 2016, the North American Numbering Council (NANC), 
issued a report on NNP. The NANC is the Commission's Federal Advisory 
Committee on numbering administration matters. It is comprised of state 
regulators, consumer groups, industry representatives, and other 
stakeholders interested in number administration. The NANC Report 
recommended further inquiry into several issues, including potential 
impacts to the life of the NANP, necessary edits to federal rules, and 
the role of LRNs in the future as carriers use both time division 
multiplexing- and VoIP-based interconnection.
    10. The Alliance for Technical Industry Solutions (ATIS) approved a 
Technical Report on a Nationwide Number Portability Study on June 20, 
2016. The Alliance for Telecommunication Industry Solutions (ATIS) is a 
technical planning and standards organization that develops and 
promotes technical and operations standards for communications and 
related information technologies worldwide. The ATIS Report analyzes 
five potential solutions for achieving NNP: (1) Nationwide 
implementation of LRNs; (2) non-Geographic LRNs (NGLRNs); (3) 
commercial agreements; (4) Internet interconnection; and (5) 
iconectiv's GR-2982-CORE specification. ATIS reported that the 
commercial agreement solution is the only one that can be supported 
today that has no porting impacts.
    11. On August 30, 2016, the NANC LNP Working Group issued a white 
paper on NGNP (the NANC notes that NGNP and NNP ``are considered to be 
two synonymous terms, but it has become the preference of the NANC 
Working Groups to use the term NNP''). Among other things, the LNP 
Working Group concluded that regulatory changes made as a result of 
non-geographic number porting implementation should be technology and 
provider agnostic. The Working Group reiterated that ``any 
implementation of NGNP . . . will require collaboration and support by 
all parties involved'' and that an industry move towards NGNP will 
require a mandate by the Commission.

B. Background on Number Portability Mechanisms

    12. In the last few years, ATIS and the NANC have worked to develop 
approaches for implementing NNP and thereby, increase access to 
smaller, regional carriers and increase routing efficiency in the 
network. Because the changes required by some of these proposals could 
be hindered by legacy aspects of our telephone regulations, we propose 
to eliminate certain legacy aspects of our telephone regulations to 
promote NNP, such as existing N-1 and dialing parity requirements. This 
section provides a summary of existing number portability mechanisms as 
background to the proposals and questions in the NPRM and the NOI 
below.
    13. Current LNP Process. In the current local number portability 
system, consumers may keep their telephone number when changing 
providers if they remain at the same location. Stated differently, 
consumers may be prevented, for technical reasons, from retaining their 
telephone number when switching providers if they move outside the 
original geographic area of

[[Page 55973]]

their telephone number. This is true for both intramodal (e.g., 
wireline-to-wireline or wireless-to-wireless) and intermodal (e.g., 
wireline-to-wireless) ports. In either context, a customer who changes 
carriers, or who moves within the same general geographic area, can 
retain a telephone number through the use of a LRN: A 10-digit number-
like number that shares a switch with the customer's location. The LRN 
is essentially a telephone number that designates the switch that 
serves the customer's new location. When someone calls that customer's 
ported number, one of the carriers routing the call will query the 
Number Portability Administration Center/Service Management System 
(NPAC/SMS), which provides the routing carrier the appropriate LRN. The 
NPAC/SMS consists of hardware and software platforms that host a 
national information database and serves as the central coordination 
point of LNP activity. In this NPRM/NOI, we refer to this system simply 
as the NPAC. The call is then routed to the appropriate switch, which 
contains the information necessary to route the call to the correct 
customer. The N-1 query requirement, described below, is built into 
this process; NNP solutions that alter the process would likely require 
altering or rescinding the N-1 requirement, lest it result in 
persistent routing inefficiencies. Dialing parity requirements are also 
implicated in the routing of calls to ported numbers, and their 
amendment may similarly facilitate NNP, by allowing greater choice on 
the part of local carriers to decide how calls are routed.
    14. N-1 Requirement. The N-1 query requirement mandates that the 
carrier immediately preceding the terminating carrier (the N-1 carrier) 
be responsible for ensuring that the number portability database is 
queried. Paragraph 73 of the Second Number Portability Order is 
included in the NANC's recommendations for LNP architecture and 
administration, and thus incorporated by reference into our Rules. For 
instance, if a carrier is asked to originate a telephone call to a 
number that can be ported, it first determines whether or not the 
number requires routing to an interexchange carrier. If so, it routes 
the call to the interexchange carrier, which then queries the NPAC, 
sending it the digits of the dialed telephone number. The database 
answers the query by providing an LRN. The interexchange provider then 
routes the call to the terminating carrier's switch, which routes the 
call to the intended recipient. In this case, the interexchange carrier 
is the N-1 carrier, and thus performs the number portability database 
query. If, on the other hand, the originating carrier finds that the 
dialed number does not require handoff to an interexchange carrier, it 
performs the query itself, receives the LRN, and then routes the call 
to the appropriate terminating carrier's switch. In that case, the 
originating carrier itself is the N-1 carrier, since only two carriers 
are involved.
    15. The N-1 requirement requires the second-to-last carrier to 
perform the number portability database query; where an interexchange 
carrier is involved, this prevents the originating carrier from 
performing the query. The N-1 requirement was recommended by the NANC 
and adopted by the Commission in the early stages of implementing LNP 
because it ensured that: Carriers would know when a database had been 
queried; the cost of performing queries would be distributed between 
interexchange and originating providers; and, moreover, that routing 
performance would not be degraded by, for instance, having a call 
routed to a supposed terminating carrier, only for that carrier to 
perform a query and discover that the number had been ported and 
required further routing. Furthermore, industry stakeholders at the 
time preferred the N-1 query requirement to having the originating 
service provider perform the query, since doing so would require all 
carriers across the country to implement number portability 
simultaneously for it to work. However, given changing market 
conditions, and even more so with NNP, this system may need to be 
altered. As explained by ATIS, ``[i]n an NNP environment, a call could 
look like it is interLATA but actually be intraLATA. In this case it 
could be more efficient for the originating carrier to know this, but 
they may not be able to do this with the N-1 requirement.'' Thus, 
changes to the number portability system can affect the ability for a 
given carrier to know whether or not it is in fact the N-1 carrier, and 
the requirement would actively introduce inefficiencies into the 
routing system, in some cases resulting in calls unnecessarily being 
rerouted multiple times, potentially increasing traffic and costs for 
carriers, and delays for consumers.
    16. Dialing Parity. Dialing parity provisions were originally 
intended to ensure that incumbent LECs provided the same access to 
stand-alone long distance service providers as they did to their own or 
their affiliates' long distance offerings. This nondiscriminatory 
access to interexchange carriers is part of the set of equal access 
requirements in the Act that have been adopted from the 1982 
Modification of Final Judgment (MFJ) in the federal antitrust case 
against AT&T, which imposed these requirements on the Bell Operating 
Companies (BOCs). The Telecommunications Act of 1996 (1996 Act) 
incorporated the MFJ's equal access requirements for these former BOCs 
into the Communications Act via section 251(g). The 1996 Act also 
created more specific, affirmative equal access requirements in section 
251(b) that applied to all local exchange carriers. The provisions in 
this section substantially resemble the requirements in the MFJ, with 
the key differences that the requirements in the MFJ cover information 
services as well as telephone toll service, and section 251(b)(3) 
covers local exchange and telephone toll service.
    17. We seek, through this NPRM and NOI, to continue the 
Commission's efforts to align our regulations with the trend toward 
all-distance voice services. Moreover, we recognize, the decline of the 
stand-alone long distance market has limited the relevance and utility 
of certain equal access obligations for competitive providers and their 
customers. In the 2015 USTelecom Forbearance Order, the Commission 
forbore from the ``application to incumbent LECs of all remaining equal 
access and dialing parity requirements for interexchange services, 
including those under section 251(g) and section 251(b)(3) of the 
Act.'' However, the Commission adopted a ``grandfathering'' condition 
allowing incumbent LEC customers who were presubscribed to third-party 
long distance services as of the date of the 2015 USTelecom Forbearance 
Order to retain certain equal access and dialing parity service. Thus, 
unless the grandfathering condition is applicable, toll dialing parity 
requirements, preserved by section 251(g), and the long distance (toll) 
dialing parity requirements of section 251(b)(3), no longer apply to 
incumbent LEC provision of interexchange access services.
    18. Since the 2015 US Telecom Forbearance Order, only limited toll 
dialing parity requirements remain. Competitive local exchange carriers 
(competitive LECs) must still abide by the long-distance dialing parity 
requirements of section 251(b)(3). The ATIS Report on NNP suggests that 
interLATA call processing requirements, such as the interexchange 
dialing parity requirements, may hinder certain proposals for NNP. 
Currently, an originating carrier determines whether or not to hand a 
call to an interexchange carrier based upon the dialed number.

[[Page 55974]]

However, if numbers can be ported on a nationwide basis, the number 
might actually be in the same LATA, meaning that transfer to an 
interexchange carrier of the customer's choosing would result in 
persistently inefficient routing, with potentially concomitant delays 
and costs. Eliminating the remaining dialing parity requirements may 
allow originating carriers to avoid these inefficiencies by increasing 
their choices. For instance, a carrier being asked by a customer to 
originate a call to a non-geographic telephone number might benefit 
from being able to handle the call as it prefers, instead of abiding by 
the constraints of the dialing parity requirements.

III. Notice of Proposed Rulemaking

    19. We believe that NNP will level the playing field for many rural 
and regional carriers, who are disadvantaged by the difficulty or 
outright inability of consumers to port in to their networks. 
Accordingly, we believe it is important to begin forging the way 
towards NNP. Because we understand that achieving this goal without 
incurring significant practical harms or prohibitive costs will require 
extensive work, collaboration, and support by all parties involved, we 
propose taking an incremental approach toward achieving NNP. As a first 
step to accommodate the architectures of NNP proposals and to reflect 
the evolving marketplace, we propose to remove the N-1 query 
requirement. Further, based on the ATIS Report and the marketplace 
findings in the 2015 USTelecom Forbearance Order, we propose to 
eliminate remaining interexchange dialing parity requirements. Removing 
these regulations will thus help ensure an efficient network that 
provides consumers maximum flexibility in their communications choices 
and a competitive landscape for small and rural providers.

A. Proposed Elimination of the N-1 Query Requirement

    20. We seek comment on whether the N-1 query requirement impedes 
plans for NNP such as the non-geographic LNP proposal. As the ATIS 
Report notes, in an NNP environment, an originating carrier could not 
determine, without performing a query, whether a dialed number required 
interexchange routing or not. This could lead to a number of 
inefficiencies, such as a scenario in which a number is ported from a 
distant location to the same LATA as an originating caller. In such a 
scenario, the originating carrier, believing the call to be long-
distance, would route the call to an interexchange carrier, only for 
the interexchange carrier, upon conducting the query, to have to route 
the ported number back to the originating carrier's LATA.
    21. Furthermore, the motivating concerns that caused the NANC to 
recommend and the Commission to implement the N-1 requirement no longer 
seem to apply. When it was first adopted, the N-1 requirement was 
favored over requiring originating carriers to perform the database 
query because this latter solution would have required every local 
carrier across the country to adopt LNP simultaneously in a ``flash-
cut'' manner for LNP to work, requiring more complicated coordination 
of the LNP rollout. Moreover, in an environment of many competing 
interexchange carriers and restrictions on incumbent LECs from offering 
interexchange services, interexchange carriers ``wanted to ensure that 
they were involved in this important aspect of call processing.'' Since 
LNP has by now been broadly and successfully adopted nationwide, and in 
light of the changed competitive landscape, we anticipate that these 
concerns are no longer relevant.
    22. We therefore propose to eliminate the N-1 query requirement, 
and we seek comment on this proposal. What are the benefits and 
drawbacks of removing the requirement? Is eliminating the requirement 
necessary to, or will it facilitate, the implementation of non-
geographic location routing numbers or other NNP proposals, as 
suggested by ATIS? Would removing the requirement interfere with any 
aspects of the current routing or number portability querying system, 
or any other aspect of the network? For example, by proposing to allow 
carriers flexibility in conducting NPAC queries, will there be 
coordination issues among carriers or calls that are processed without 
a query? What costs, if any, would be saved if we eliminated the N-1 
query requirement? Did the N-1 requirement lead to network routing 
inefficiencies and will its elimination correct those inefficiencies? 
Alternatively, will rescinding the requirement add to the costs of 
originating carriers, terminating carriers, or other parties, either in 
terms of performing more queries, or in terms of requiring equipment 
upgrades? Are there transaction or other costs or harms associated with 
transitioning away from N-1 query? In the absence of the requirement, 
would costs of the system be allocated appropriately? Would there be 
any other benefits of eliminating the N-1 query requirement not 
predicated on a move to NNP? Interested stakeholders should address 
these questions.
    23. The ATIS Report states that eliminating the N-1 query 
requirement does not require supplanting it with a new requirement that 
originating carriers query the NPAC. According to the Report, ``[a] 
carrier could choose to query all calls on their originating network 
and route calls to the NNP numbers accordingly, or they could choose to 
handle calls as they do today, i.e., if a call looks like it is 
interLATA, hand it off to the IXC and let the IXC query the call.'' As 
the ATIS Report notes, it is important to ensure the call is queried 
before it gets to the network that is assigned the central office (CO) 
code, but not necessarily that the N-1 methodology be used. We seek 
comment on this perspective. Are there any benefits to the Commission 
requiring particular parties to perform the query, or are existing 
technical and market mechanisms (such as agreements and signaling 
between providers indicating query status) sufficient to ensure that 
queries will be performed efficiently and by the parties best placed to 
do so?
    24. We also seek comment on whether anticipated changes in routing 
and queries might have other effects upon the public. For instance, how 
would these changes interact with public safety, including the 
provision of emergency services, such as 911 or Next Generation 911 
calls? Will eliminating the N-1 query requirement lead to any changes 
in the handling of emergency calls, including their routing or the 
provision of necessary caller information?

B. Proposed Elimination of Remaining Interexchange Dialing Party 
Requirements

    25. In the 2015 USTelecom Forbearance Order, the Commission forbore 
from the dialing parity provisions of sections 251(b)(3) and 251(g) 
only insofar as they applied to incumbent LECs in their provision of 
interexchange access services. In this section, we (1) propose to 
extend that forbearance to competitive LECs, (2) seek comment on 
extending forbearance to ``grandfathered'' customers who still maintain 
accounts with stand-alone long-distance providers, and (3) propose to 
eliminate the Commission's rules that mandate interexchange dialing 
parity and other requirements associated with it. We do not propose 
here to forbear from other requirements of section 251, such as 
requirements for interconnection; resale; number portability; access to 
rights of way; reciprocal compensation; or nondiscriminatory access to 
telephone numbers, operator services, directory assistance services, 
directory listings,

[[Page 55975]]

with no unreasonable dialing delays. We anticipate that these changes 
will remove barriers to NNP and better reflect the competitive 
realities of today's marketplace.
1. Proposed Forbearance From Interexchange Dialing Parity Requirements
    26. We propose to forbear from the dialing parity requirements of 
section 251(b)(3) as they apply to interexchange services. The 2015 
USTelecom Forbearance Order removed these constraints from incumbent 
LECs with regard to interexchange access services, and we propose to 
extend that same forbearance to competitive LECs. Section 10 of the Act 
states that the Commission shall forbear from applying any regulation 
or provision of the Act if it determines that: (1) Enforcement of such 
regulation or provision is not necessary to ensure that the charges, 
practices, classifications, or regulations by, for, or in connection 
with that telecommunications carrier or telecommunications service are 
just and reasonable and are not unjustly or unreasonably 
discriminatory; (2) enforcement of such regulation or provision is not 
necessary for the protection of consumers; and (3) forbearance from 
applying such provision or regulation is consistent with the public 
interest. We seek comment on whether forbearing from the dialing parity 
requirements of section 251(b)(3) as they apply to interexchange 
services would meet the criteria of section 10.
    27. We believe that the remaining interexchange dialing parity 
requirements for competitive LECs are no longer necessary in today's 
all-distance market to ensure that the charges and practices of 
competitive LECs are just and reasonable and are not unjustly or 
unreasonably discriminatory, and are no longer necessary for the 
protection of consumers. We further believe that the rationales behind 
the forbearance from the interexchange dialing parity requirements in 
the 2015 USTelecom Forbearance Order apply similarly to both incumbent 
and competitive LECs. Do commenters agree? For instance, are commenters 
aware of substantial complaints stemming from our forbearance from the 
interexchange dialing parity requirements in the 2015 USTelecom 
Forbearance Order? As described in the 2015 USTelecom Forbearance 
Order, wireline customers today have more choices than they did in 1982 
or 1996, including interconnected VoIP services. Similarly, stand-alone 
long-distance has not been critical to competition for over a decade, 
with declining demand for it from both mass-market and business 
customers. Does the decrease in demand for stand-alone interexchange 
services reduce the likelihood that LECs will have unjust or 
unreasonable charges, practices, or classifications, and does it 
suggest that consumers no longer require protection from such 
practices? Does the increase in consumer choice obviate the need for 
these protections?
    28. We also seek comment on the extent to which the interexchange 
dialing parity provisions affect any competitive LECs in practice. Do 
these provisions have substantial effects upon the costs, practices, 
and behavior of LECs currently? Are there any effects upon competitive 
LECs that significantly affect the market for local service as a whole? 
For example, given that competitive LECs serve a relatively small 
percentage of residential wireline voice accounts, do these provisions 
help a significant number of consumers or competitors?
    29. Forbearance from the interexchange dialing parity requirements 
would also appear to be in the public interest. ATIS notes that an NNP 
regime, with all of the benefits to competition and consumers that come 
with it, would be facilitated by the elimination of interLATA call 
processing requirements. The ATIS Report notes that carriers' ability 
to efficiently route calls to non-geographic LRNs could be hindered by 
the need to refer calls that look like interexchange calls to a third-
party carrier, when the call would more efficiently have been routed to 
a non-geographic transport provider or a non-geographic gateway. It is 
our understanding that forbearing from interexchange dialing parity 
would enable originating carriers to better choose how to route their 
calls, preventing inefficient network routing that might otherwise 
result from various NNP proposals. Do commenters agree? Can customers' 
pre-subscribed interexchange carrier choices accommodate the proposed 
changes without a loss of efficiency or undue cost? Are there other 
effects upon the public interest that might result from our proposed 
forbearance from the interexchange dialing parity requirements for 
competitive LECs? For instance, will there be any effects upon 911, 
Next Generation 911, or other aspects of emergency calling?
    30. Furthermore, section 10(b) requires that the Commission account 
for the effects of forbearance on ensuring a competitive marketplace in 
making its public interest determination. Since the implementation of 
the 2015 USTelecom Forbearance Order, incumbent LECs have not had to 
comply with the interexchange dialing parity requirements of sections 
251(b)(3) and 251(g). Will extending forbearance from those 
requirements to competitive LECs therefore ensure a level playing field 
between incumbent and competitive LECs? Will forbearance from these 
requirements help ensure a level and competitive playing field for 
small, rural, and regional carriers with respect to number portability? 
Will granting LECs more flexibility in choosing how calls are routed 
improve their competitive ability and offer consumers access to greater 
number portability? How else will the competitive landscape be affected 
by this proposed forbearance?
    31. Given the decreased need for these mandates, combined with the 
likelihood that they will impede the implementation of NNP, we propose 
to use our forbearance authority to eliminate remaining interexchange 
dialing parity requirements, which apply to competitive LECs. We seek 
comment on this proposal. What costs, if any, do competitive LECs 
currently bear due to these requirements? Are other providers of local 
voice service, such as interconnected VoIP providers, affected by the 
application of these provisions, either to themselves or to 
competitors? Do other stakeholders benefit from relieving competitive 
LECs of these requirements, or are there other costs? Are there 
stakeholders whose position vis-[agrave]-vis competitive LECs today is 
significantly different from their position vis-[agrave]-vis incumbent 
LECs at the time of the 2015 USTelecom Forbearance Order? Are there 
other aspects of section 251(b)(3), including nondiscriminatory access 
to telephone numbers, operator services, directory assistance, and 
directory listing, that are relevant to stakeholders today? We do not 
here propose to forbear from requirements for interconnection, resale, 
number portability, access to rights of way, or reciprocal 
compensation. Would any of these existing requirements be affected by 
our proposed forbearance? Would forbearance from any of these 
provisions assist in or hinder the implementation of NNP?
    32. In the 2015 USTelecom Forbearance Order, we forbore from the 
all remaining equal access requirements, including dialing parity, 
preserved in section 251(g), with the exception of the grandfathering 
condition. We do not believe the dialing parity requirements preserved 
in section 251(g) apply to competitive LECs. We seek comment on whether 
there are any dialing parity

[[Page 55976]]

requirements (applied via section 251(g)) from which we must forbear. 
If there are any remaining dialing parity requirements, we propose to 
forbear from those requirements and seek comment on such forbearance.
2. Seeking Comment on Extending Forbearance From Interexchange Dialing 
Parity Rules to Customers With Pre-Existing Stand-Alone Long-Distance 
Carriers
    33. We also seek comment on the continuing need to preserve the 
choices of existing customers who are presubscribed to stand-alone 
long-distance services, whose choices were grandfathered in the 2015 
USTelecom Forbearance Order. Will LECs serving these customers be 
hindered from implementing NNP if these grandfathered customers 
continue to fall outside of the scope of forbearance? What costs would 
LECs or other carriers face in implementing NNP with or without the 
preservation of these choices? How many people still purchase long-
distance calling from stand-alone long-distance carriers? Will these 
subscribers face any additional costs, burdens, or harms if we forbear 
from interexchange dialing parity rules? We seek estimates that 
quantify the cost of adjustment that such subscribers might face. Do 
interexchange carriers place material competitive pressure on LECs, and 
if so, what consumer benefit would be lost if we forbear as discussed 
herein? Are there additional benefits to retaining current 
grandfathered subscribers? In the 2015 USTelecom Forbearance Order, we 
found that a significant number of retail customers still presubscribed 
to a stand-alone long-distance carrier, and that the public interest 
and protection of consumers required limiting the forbearance of equal 
access and dialing parity rules for these customers. We seek comment on 
whether or not extending this forbearance would meet the criteria of 
section 10.
    34. We seek comment on whether the rationales for the 
grandfathering in the 2015 USTelecom Forbearance Order still apply. 
Have conditions significantly changed since 2015? We seek comment on 
the present number of retail customers in the United States who 
presubscribe to stand-alone long-distance carriers. Would extending 
forbearance to these customers affect the costs they bear, considering 
the competition for all-distance packages? Are there any harms to 
customers affected by the 2015 USTelecom Forbearance Order that suggest 
that we should retain the forbearance for grandfathered customers? Are 
the number of such customers, and benefit they receive from use of 
stand-alone long-distance carriers, significant enough to justify 
maintaining this grandfathered status when weighed against the burdens 
and costs it imposes on LECs? Would eliminating the grandfathering and 
extending this forbearance to them meet the criteria of section 10?
3. Proposing Elimination of Toll Dialing Parity Rules
    35. Because we propose to forbear from the long-distance dialing 
parity provisions of section 251(b)(3), for both incumbent and 
competitive LECs, we propose to eliminate the rules implementing those 
requirements. We believe that sections 51.209 (``Toll dialing 
parity''), 51.213 (``Toll dialing parity implementation plans''), and 
51.215 (``Dialing parity; Cost recovery'' for toll dialing parity), 
serve only to implement the provisions of section 251(b)(3) relating to 
toll dialing parity, and thus should be eliminated if our proposed 
forbearances are to be effective in facilitating the development of 
NNP. We also propose modifying section 51.205 (``Dialing parity: 
General'') to omit references to toll dialing parity. We seek comment 
on this proposal. Do these rule provisions serve any purpose or 
implement any other portions of the Act other than section 251(b)(3)? 
Are there any other rules whose only purpose is to implement toll 
dialing parity requirements? Are there any interests beyond those 
articulated in the Act's dialing parity provisions that require these 
rules? How are these considerations affected by the retention or 
elimination of grandfathered customer relationships with presubscribed 
interexchange carriers? Will the elimination of these rules have any 
effect upon slamming? For example, can elimination of these rules 
reduce the mechanisms by which unscrupulous entities slam consumers? 
Conversely, are there useful consumer protections against slamming in 
these rules that are not effectively implemented elsewhere?
    36. We seek comment on whether there are other rules that should be 
rescinded or modified to promote NNP. Should we consider forbearing 
from any other statutory provisions to allow the benefits of NNP to 
competition and consumers? We also seek comment on the interplay of the 
proposed forbearance and rule changes discussed in the NPRM with the 
technical solutions discussed below in the NOI. Specifically, to make 
NNP workable, should any forbearance and rule changes happen first, in 
advance of implementing any technical solutions, or should the 
Commission defer until any technical solutions are in place?

IV. Notice of Inquiry

    37. While we believe it is important to move toward NNP, and invite 
comment above on steps that would lay the groundwork for doing so, we 
also seek input on how best to implement NNP, as well as its potential 
impacts on consumers and carriers. We therefore seek comment in this 
NOI on a variety of issues related to the deployment of NNP. We also 
note that while the focus of this NOI is to seek perspectives on the 
most feasible way to implement NNP, the goals of this proceeding could 
also be facilitated by larger changes to the current system of 
numbering administration. To that end, we also seek comment on how 
number administration might be improved to realize more efficient 
technical, operational, administrative, and legal processes.

A. Scope of Inquiry

    38. The ATIS Report and the NANC Report focus on NNP across 
wireline and wireless telecommunications services. Early efforts on 
this issue, however, focused merely on ensuring that wireless customers 
can retain their numbers when porting to other wireless carriers that 
lack a nationwide service area. We believe broader, intermodal NNP 
efforts will benefit consumers and competition, as well as potentially 
allow for useful reforms of the numbering system, and we explore means 
of achieving this goal below.
    39. While our goal is to ensure broad, intermodal NNP, are there 
any benefits to a gradual implementation of NNP? Is such a partial 
deployment technically feasible? For instance, would it be possible for 
NNP to first be implemented for a particular subset of entities using 
numbering resources (such as wireless providers) before applying it to 
all entities? What advantages and disadvantages are there to a partial 
implementation of NNP?

B. NNP Alternatives Identified in the ATIS Report

    40. We seek comment on four of the specific models of NNP outlined 
by ATIS in its report: (1) Nationwide implementation of LRNs; (2) non-
Geographic LRNs (NGLRNs); (3) commercial agreements; and (4) 
iconectiv's GR-2982-CORE specification. Are any of the models 
preferable to others in terms of feasibility, cost, and adaptability to 
changing markets and technologies? Have ATIS and the NANC adequately 
considered the potential costs, benefits,

[[Page 55977]]

and barriers to implementation of each of these proposals? More 
generally, we seek evidence quantifying the benefit consumers would 
gain from being able to keep their number whenever they move outside a 
rate center and, alternatively, whether NNP would impose costs that 
outweigh those benefits as phone numbers increasingly become less 
informative about the dialed party's location. We also anticipate that 
NNP will have beneficial competitive effects, by allowing small, rural, 
and regional carriers to compete more effectively with larger, 
nationwide providers. We seek comment on this perspective. We also seek 
comment on other effects that these NNP proposals might have upon small 
carriers, including precisely what costs they might impose upon them, 
and how. We also seek comment on the impacts these various alternatives 
pose to routing calls to ported telephone numbers. To the extent that 
commenters believe that other NNP proposals, in addition to those 
outlined below, are promising solutions for NNP, we seek comment on 
those proposals and their potential implications.
    41. National LRN. One conceptually simple way of implementing NNP 
would be to allow a ported number to be associated with any LRN. 
Instead of limiting the geographic area within which the number can be 
ported, the system could associate it with an LRN associated with any 
location in the country. Although this approach allows many existing 
systems and processes to be used, it also requires changes to NPAC 
rules, may complicate other routing and critical processes, and may 
require many carriers to upgrade or replace existing equipment. The 
NGNP subcommittee found that such an approach would require the NPAC to 
relax existing LRN changes to allow any LRN to be added to any NPAC 
region (there are eight NPAC regions--one in Canada and seven in the 
United States). In addition, it might require carriers to accept 
downloads from all NPAC regions, or keep port records in the region 
that is servicing the ported telephone number.
    42. National LRN may require carriers' existing switches to handle 
more numbering plan areas, since a given switch may have to accommodate 
telephone numbers being ported in from a wider range of original areas. 
National LRN likely also requires changes to number portability rules. 
We have proposed eliminating the N-1 query requirement and remaining 
interexchange dialing parity requirements in the NPRM above. Are 
additional changes necessary? We seek comment on these issues.
    43. The national LRN proposal also implicates several non-routing 
issues. Industry processes, including the handling of call detail 
records, subscriber billing, and caller ID, will be impacted. We also 
anticipate that tariffs, toll free database processing, enhanced 911 
processes, and other systems that rely upon the relationship between a 
telephone number and its rate center/LATA will likely be affected. What 
systems will be affected, and to what extent? We seek comment from 
providers, end users, and other stakeholders on what dependencies exist 
that would require changes, as well as how changes brought about by 
national LRN can improve existing systems.
    44. The ATIS Report anticipates that a porting-in service provider 
may not have a presence in the ported-out area. While such situations 
currently exist and are generally handled by agreements between 
providers, many more such situations are likely to arise in a national 
LRN environment. What effects will this increase in demand have?
    45. Local systems, including Local Service Management Systems 
(LSMS) and Service Order Administration (SOA), will also be affected by 
a national LRN system. Current systems may rely in part upon an assumed 
structure whereby numbers are only ported within LATAs or NPAC regions; 
an LRN can only be associated with a single NPAC region; or a ported 
telephone number record can only exist in one NPAC region. We seek 
comment on what dependencies exist based on these assumptions, and how 
they might be resolved.
    46. What is necessary to ensure that a national LRN system is 
compatible with the variation in dialing plans across the country? 
Different customers have different requirements when dialing--some need 
only dial seven digits of a local number; others must dial ten digits, 
others must dial 1 and ten digits. Is nationwide consistency required 
for national LRN compatibility?
    47. What effects will a national LRN system have on state 
regulators and systems? Porting numbers across state lines raises 
questions of existing state regulatory authority, and policy, including 
numbering resource management. For example, would NNP affect state 
regulatory commission processes for reviewing tariffs, handling 
customer complaints, and ensuring public safety? Provider 
responsibilities, obligations, and liabilities may also be implicated 
with interstate porting. We seek comment on what issues may arise and 
how they may be resolved. Can existing systems and agreements in 
bordering states serve as models for interstate cooperation?
    48. How will consumer experiences be affected by a national LRN 
system? Would calls to numbers ported outside of a specific rate center 
have completion issues? Consumers would also need to be informed about 
any effects upon rates and billing, if they subscribe to a 
geographically-based rate plan keyed to their rate center or LATA. How 
might this be done? Some consumers use software that blocks calls which 
incur tolls, based upon the number's NPA-NXX. How will such programs be 
affected, and how can they be adapted, if necessary, to accommodate a 
national LRN system? What effects will there be on caller ID?
    49. Certain services are set up with restrictions on toll free 
calling based on the calling party's location. A customer who ports his 
number to a new location might therefore have problems calling the same 
toll-free number. We seek comment on the effects on toll free calling 
and potential implications of national LRN.
    50. Non-Geographic LRN (NGLRN). Another mechanism to allow NNP is 
to designate a new area code unaffiliated with any particular location. 
This non-geographic area code would be the area code for NGLRNs. Under 
an NGLRN system, ported numbers are associated with an NGLRN, instead 
of an LRN associated with the new location. When a service provider 
queries the NPAC and receives an NGLRN, the call is then routed to a 
non-geographic gateway (NGGW) that resides on an IP network and routes 
the call appropriately. This system can also support the creation of 
non-geographic telephone numbers. An NGLRN solution would support both 
wireline and wireless NNP. It also allows many existing processes to 
continue working, but as noted by ATIS and the NGNP subcommittee, it 
requires the creation and setup of the non-geographic area code, 
NGLRNS, NGGWs, and likely changes to certain regulations, including the 
N-1 query requirement.
    51. The ATIS Report anticipates that aspects of interLATA call 
processing requirements, such as the dialing parity provisions, may 
interfere with an NGLRN system. Likewise, the ATIS Report suggests that 
the N-1 query requirement could create problems. Are these concerns 
adequately dealt with by our proposed forbearance from these rules as 
discussed above?

[[Page 55978]]

    52. To route calls to non-geographic telephone numbers, carriers 
will need to access relevant routing information and route to NGGWs. 
Carriers that cannot route to NGGWs will need to route calls to a 
carrier that can, possibly requiring agreements with non-geographic 
transport providers. What policies are necessary to ensure continued 
and reliable call routing in an NGLRN system? What criteria should be 
required for NGGWs? The ATIS Report recommends that an industry-led 
body create a certification process. What bodies are best placed to 
conduct such certification, and what oversight should they have to 
ensure effectiveness, efficiency, transparency, and competition? We 
also seek comment on criteria for NGGWs, such as interconnection 
requirements. The ATIS Report recommends that carriers not be required 
to provide NGGW service or NNP service and that the only requirement be 
that carriers have the ability to route calls to NGLRNs. Furthermore, 
ATIS suggests that carriers that do choose to provide NGGW do so ``for 
their own customers only.'' We seek comment on this recommendation. 
Relatedly, the NGLRN system is designed such that carriers are not 
required to implement NNP. What would be an appropriate timeline for 
NNP adoption, if any?
    53. What characteristics should any non-geographic area code have? 
Should it be easily recognizable? Should various non-geographic area 
codes resemble each other for ease of recognition? How should the 
system address integration with other NANP countries? What impact would 
assignment and use of a non-geographic area code or codes within the 
NANP have on number exhaust in the United States and other NANP 
countries? We also seek comment on whether a single non-geographic area 
code will scale for the total set of NGLRNs. Will a single non-
geographic area code be sufficient for the future?
    54. The ATIS Report also raises several specific questions with 
regard to administration of non-geographic resources with an NGLRN 
system. The ATIS Report notes that certain current systems can be 
simplified with the adoption of non-geographic codes, such as combining 
the processes of number allocation and porting, or allowing distributed 
registries to handle processes currently managed by a single 
authoritative registry. We seek comment on the potential for such 
reforms, and their integration with existing systems and authorities.
    55. With an NGLRN system, a call to 911 does not indicate its 
location by virtue of the calling telephone number, but rather from 
databases such as the Master Service Address Guide (MSAG) or the 
emergency service number that has been assigned to the cell site. Will 
systems that depend on pseudo-Automatic Number Identification (p-ANI), 
in use for wireless and VoIP calls, be appropriate for other non-
geographic calls?
    56. Commercial Agreements. One proposed solution for wireless 
carriers uses a third party entity that would install points of 
interconnection in various LATAs, using its own network as a way to 
route interLATA calls to ported numbers. This proposal requires 
significant evaluation of LRN assignments in addition to the nature, 
categorization, and operation of the third party. The NGNP subcommittee 
found that the commercial agreement solution was the only one that 
could be supported without significant changes or impacts to NPAC or 
service provider systems.
    57. In a commercial agreement solution, what entities would act as 
the third-party network, and what abilities and obligations would they 
need to have for effective and competitive operation? What would such a 
system require with respect to LRN assignments? Would such a proposal 
provide a pathway for wireline and intermodal NNP?
    58. GR-2982-CORE. iconectiv's GR-2982-CORE specification details 
another NNP system called Portability Outside the Rate Center (PORC). 
PORC calls for dividing the country into small, non-overlapping 
geographic blocks called Geographic Unit Building Blocks (GUBBs). Each 
GUBB is represented by a telephone number-like identifier, and acts as 
the vehicle for the recipient switch to identify the geographic 
location of the end user receiving the call. A call to a ported 
telephone number will be routed using an LRN, as it is today, with the 
difference that the GUBB is used for carrier selection and rating 
purposes. This includes changes in how the caller is billed, and may 
include the need to alter porting data and NPAC policies and 
procedures. GR-2982-CORE also recognizes that participating carriers 
must have compatible switches, depending upon their role in the call 
flow. The NGNP subcommittee found that this proposal might require the 
NPAC to relax LRN changes, and may impact porting data if systems need 
to transmit additional routing data about the newly-created geographic 
building blocks of the system. The NGNP subcommittee also reports that 
changes to the porting records would impact all switches and number 
portability databases and many service order administrations and local 
service management systems across the industry.
    59. Do commenters agree with the NGNP subcommittee's assessments? 
Are there other issues or factors we should take into consideration in 
exploring the various approaches? How should the subcommittee's 
assessments affect any future action on these solutions?
    60. The ATIS Report suggests that this solution may require the 
NPAC to relax existing LRN changes; that porting data may need to 
change to include GUBB information; and that these changes may impact 
all switches and number portability databases, as well as many SOAs and 
LSMS systems. What do these effects suggest for the viability of this 
solution currently? What is the likely timing for this option?

C. Necessary Changes and Challenges to Achieving NNP

    61. Apart from the implications raised by each specific proposal 
outlined by ATIS and the NANC, most, if not all, NNP proposals will 
have consequences for a variety of other aspects of the network. We 
seek comment on these implications in the specific areas below.
    62. Routing and Interconnection. Are there NNP solutions that can 
improve the efficiency of existing routing systems? Conversely, are 
there NNP proposals that burden or render inefficient particular 
systems or industry databases? Can such systems and databases be 
modified, improved, or obviated with NNP solutions?
    63. Public Safety. We seek comment on the effects that NNP might 
have upon public safety, including users' ability to use 911 in the 
knowledge that their calls will be routed appropriately, and that 
Public Safety Answering Points (PSAP) will receive accurate callback 
and location information. Can an NNP system provide this information? 
To the extent that existing systems lack the ability to provide this 
information in various NNP scenarios, are there modifications, 
adaptations, or workarounds that can supply it?
    64. For instance, how can proposed NNP solutions work with legacy 
systems that rely upon ANI to report the location of users calling 911? 
Are enhanced or next generation 911 services affected by the proposals? 
The ATIS Report details several number portability issues affecting 
emergency calls, and we seek comment on their resolution.
    65. The ATIS Report similarly notes potential effects of NNP 
proposals on the use of national security and emergency preparedness 
systems like Emergency Telecommunications Service

[[Page 55979]]

(ETS), including the Government Emergency Telecommunication Service 
(GETS) and the Priority Access Service (PAS), which provide priority 
calling for emergency telecommunications. What are the effects of the 
various proposals on the ability of ETS calls to be prioritized? Are 
there beneficial or deleterious effects on the network capacity, 
routing, or signaling of ETS?
    66. Access by Individuals with Disabilities. We seek comment on how 
NNP implementations might affect access to communications services by 
individuals with disabilities. Can increased intermodal and geographic 
porting provide increased access to communications networks by 
individuals using assistive technologies? The Commission has permitted 
video relay service (VRS) and IP Relay users to register and obtain 10-
digit geographic numbers, allowing users to be reached through a single 
number that will automatically connect to the registered user's primary 
VRS or IP Relay provider and allow the provider to determine the user's 
IP address for the purpose of delivering incoming calls made to that 
number. The Commission also adopted requirements allowing VRS and IP 
Relay users to have both their 10-digit number and registered location 
information forwarded to the appropriate PSAP. We seek comment on how 
any NNP implementations might benefit these services, equivalent 
services, or any other services that serve individuals with hearing and 
speech disabilities. Can widespread NNP adoption promote technologies 
and systems that allow for more efficient or user-friendly ways to 
achieve these, or better, effects? What steps would be necessary to 
ensure that access to communications services for Americans with 
disabilities continues to be robust and secure in an NNP scenario, such 
as if numbers are assigned without regard to geography?
    67. Tariffs and Intercarrier Compensation. We also seek comment on 
the various ways that NNP could affect carriers' pricing issues. How 
will proposed NNP implementations affect existing carrier tariffs? What 
are the ways in which various NNP proposals may alter the existing 
system of intercarrier compensation? Are there systems that can support 
or encourage a bill-and-keep system? What costs and benefits would such 
systems generate?

D. Number Administration

    68. We also seek comment on how changes to our current methods of 
numbering plan, number pooling, and number portability administration 
might facilitate NNP, or how NNP might affect these existing systems. 
If we significantly simplify the assignment and porting of numbers, 
would these changes require modifications to the current systems? Would 
it be possible, and beneficial, to allow multiple entities to provide 
competitive numbering administration services? Are there other systems 
of addressing what can serve as models for an evolving and increasingly 
IP-based network?

V. Legal Authority

    69. As noted above, section 251(e)(1) of the Act gives the 
Commission ``exclusive jurisdiction over those portions of the North 
American Numbering Plan that pertain to the United States'' and 
provides that numbers must be made ``available on an equitable basis.'' 
The Commission retains ``authority to set policy with respect to all 
facets of numbering administration in the United States.'' The 
Commission has promulgated local number portability rules to satisfy 
these congressional mandates, and the proposed actions in this NPRM are 
intended to further and better satisfy these mandates. We seek comment 
on this assessment.
    70. Moreover, section 10 of the Act states that the Commission 
shall forbear from applying any regulation or provision of the Act if 
it determines that: (1) Enforcement of such regulation or provision is 
not necessary to ensure that the charges, practices, classifications, 
or regulations by, for, or in connection with that telecommunications 
carrier or telecommunications service are just and reasonable and are 
not unjustly or unreasonably discriminatory; (2) enforcement of such 
regulation or provision is not necessary for the protection of 
consumers; and (3) forbearance from applying such provision or 
regulation is consistent with the public interest. We believe that our 
proposals discussed here satisfy these criteria as the remaining 
interexchange dialing parity requirements for competitive LECs are no 
longer necessary in today's all distance market to ensure that the 
charges and practices of competitive LECs are just and reasonable and 
are not unjustly or unreasonably discriminatory, and are no longer 
necessary for the protection of consumers. We seek comment on our 
forbearance analysis, as well as any other issues pertinent to our 
legal authority to facilitate NNP.

VI. Initial Regulatory Flexibility Analysis

    71. As required by the Regulatory Flexibility Act of 1980, as 
amended (RFA), the Commission has prepared this Initial Regulatory 
Flexibility Analysis (IRFA) of the possible significant economic impact 
on small entities by the policies and rules proposed in this Notice of 
Proposed Rulemaking (NPRM). The Commission requests written public 
comments on this IRFA. Comments must be identified as responses to the 
IRFA and must be filed by the deadlines for comments provided on the 
first page of the NPRM. The Commission will send a copy of the NPRM, 
including this IRFA, to the Chief Counsel for Advocacy of the Small 
Business Administration (SBA). In addition, the NPRM and IRFA (or 
summaries thereof) will be published in the Federal Register.

A. Need for, and Objectives of, the Proposed Rules

    72. In this NPRM, we propose changes to, and seek comment on, our 
rules on Local Number Portability Administration, and Nationwide Number 
Portability (NNP). In the NPRM, the Commission proposes to rescind the 
N-1 query requirement. Further, based on the ATIS Report and the 
marketplace findings in the 2015 USTelecom Forbearance Order, we 
propose to eliminate remaining interexchange dialing parity 
requirements. The objectives of the proposed modifications are to 
remove impediments to NNP.

B. Legal Basis

    73. The legal basis for any action that may be taken pursuant to 
this NPRM is contained in sections 1, 4(i), 10, 201(b), and 251(e)(1) 
of the Communications Act of 1934, as amended, 47 U.S.C. 151, 154(i), 
160, 201(b), and 251(e)(1).

C. Description and Estimate of the Number of Small Entities to Which 
the Proposed Rules Will Apply

    74. The RFA directs agencies to provide a description of, and where 
feasible, an estimate of the number of small entities that may be 
affected by the proposed rules and by the rule revisions on which the 
NPRM seeks comment, if adopted. The RFA generally defines the term 
``small entity'' as having the same meaning as the terms ``small 
business,'' ``small organization,'' and ``small governmental 
jurisdiction.'' In addition, the term ``small business'' has the same 
meaning as the term ``small-business concern'' under the Small Business 
Act. A ``small-business concern'' is one which: (1) Is

[[Page 55980]]

independently owned and operated; (2) is not dominant in its field of 
operation; and (3) satisfies any additional criteria established by the 
SBA.
    75. Small Businesses, Small Organizations, Small Governmental 
Jurisdictions. Our actions, over time, may affect small entities that 
are not easily categorized at present. We therefore describe here, at 
the outset, three comprehensive small entity size standards that could 
be directly affected herein. First, while there are industry specific 
size standards for small businesses that are used in the regulatory 
flexibility analysis, according to data from the SBA's Office of 
Advocacy, in general a small business is an independent business having 
fewer than 500 employees. These types of small businesses represent 
99.9% of all businesses in the United States which translates to 28.8 
million businesses. Next, the type of small entity described as a 
``small organization'' is generally ``any not-for-profit enterprise 
which is independently owned and operated and is not dominant in its 
field.'' Nationwide, as of 2007, there were approximately 1,621,215 
small organizations. Finally, the small entity described as a ``small 
governmental jurisdiction'' is defined generally as ``governments of 
cities, towns, townships, villages, school districts, or special 
districts, with a population of less than fifty thousand.'' U.S. Census 
Bureau data published in 2012 indicate that there were 89,476 local 
governmental jurisdictions in the United States. We estimate that, of 
this total, as many as 88,761 entities may qualify as ``small 
governmental jurisdictions.'' Thus, we estimate that most governmental 
jurisdictions are small.
    76. Wired Telecommunications Carriers. The U.S. Census Bureau 
defines this industry as ``establishments primarily engaged in 
operating and/or providing access to transmission facilities and 
infrastructure that they own and/or lease for the transmission of 
voice, data, text, sound, and video using wired communications 
networks. Transmission facilities may be based on a single technology 
or a combination of technologies. Establishments in this industry use 
the wired telecommunications network facilities that they operate to 
provide a variety of services, such as wired telephony services, 
including VoIP services, wired (cable) audio and video programming 
distribution, and wired broadband internet services. By exception, 
establishments providing satellite television distribution services 
using facilities and infrastructure that they operate are included in 
this industry.'' The SBA has developed a small business size standard 
for Wired Telecommunications Carriers, which consists of all such 
companies having 1,500 or fewer employees. Census data for 2012 show 
that there were 3,117 firms that operated that year. Of this total, 
3,083 operated with fewer than 1,000 employees. Thus, under this size 
standard, the majority of firms in this industry can be considered 
small.
    77. Local Exchange Carriers (LECs). Neither the Commission nor the 
SBA has developed a size standard for small businesses specifically 
applicable to local exchange services. The closest applicable NAICS 
Code category is Wired Telecommunications Carriers as defined above. 
Under the applicable SBA size standard, such a business is small if it 
has 1,500 or fewer employees. According to Commission data, census data 
for 2012 shows that there were 3,117 firms that operated that year. Of 
this total, 3,083 operated with fewer than 1,000 employees. The 
Commission therefore estimates that most providers of local exchange 
carrier service are small entities that may be affected by the rules 
adopted.
    78. Incumbent LECs. Neither the Commission nor the SBA has 
developed a small business size standard specifically for incumbent 
local exchange services. The closest applicable NAICS Code category is 
Wired Telecommunications Carriers as defined above. Under that size 
standard, such a business is small if it has 1,500 or fewer employees. 
According to Commission data, 3,117 firms operated in that year. Of 
this total, 3,083 operated with fewer than 1,000 employees. 
Consequently, the Commission estimates that most providers of incumbent 
local exchange service are small businesses that may be affected by the 
rules and policies adopted. Three hundred and seven (307) Incumbent 
Local Exchange Carriers reported that they were incumbent local 
exchange service providers. Of this total, an estimated 1,006 have 
1,500 or fewer employees.
    79. Competitive Local Exchange Carriers (Competitive LECs), 
Competitive Access Providers (CAPs), Shared-Tenant Service Providers, 
and Other Local Service Providers. Neither the Commission nor the SBA 
has developed a small business size standard specifically for these 
service providers. The appropriate NAICS Code category is Wired 
Telecommunications Carriers, as defined above. Under that size 
standard, such a business is small if it has 1,500 or fewer employees. 
U.S. Census data for 2012 indicate that 3,117 firms operated during 
that year. Of that number, 3,083 operated with fewer than 1,000 
employees. Based on this data, the Commission concludes that the 
majority of Competitive LECS, CAPs, Shared-Tenant Service Providers, 
and Other Local Service Providers, are small entities. According to 
Commission data, 1,442 carriers reported that they were engaged in the 
provision of either competitive local exchange services or competitive 
access provider services. Of these 1,442 carriers, an estimated 1,256 
have 1,500 or fewer employees. In addition, 17 carriers have reported 
that they are Shared-Tenant Service Providers, and all 17 are estimated 
to have 1,500 or fewer employees. Also, 72 carriers have reported that 
they are Other Local Service Providers. Of this total, 70 have 1,500 or 
fewer employees. Consequently, based on internally researched FCC data, 
the Commission estimates that most providers of competitive local 
exchange service, competitive access providers, Shared-Tenant Service 
Providers, and Other Local Service Providers are small entities.
    80. We have included small incumbent LECs in this present RFA 
analysis. As noted above, a ``small business'' under the RFA is one 
that, inter alia, meets the pertinent small business size standard 
(e.g., a telephone communications business having 1,500 or fewer 
employees), and ``is not dominant in its field of operation.'' The 
SBA's Office of Advocacy contends that, for RFA purposes, small 
incumbent LECs are not dominant in their field of operation because any 
such dominance is not ``national'' in scope. We have therefore included 
small incumbent LECs in this RFA analysis, although we emphasize that 
this RFA action has no effect on Commission analyses and determinations 
in other, non-RFA contexts.
    81. Interexchange Carriers (IXCs). Neither the Commission nor the 
SBA has developed a definition for Interexchange Carriers. The closest 
NAICS Code category is Wired Telecommunications Carriers as defined 
above. The applicable size standard under SBA rules is that such a 
business is small if it has 1,500 or fewer employees. U.S. Census data 
for 2012 indicates that 3,117 firms operated during that year. Of that 
number, 3,083 operated with fewer than 1,000 employees. According to 
internally developed Commission data, 359 companies reported that their 
primary telecommunications service activity was the provision of 
interexchange services. Of this total, an estimated 317 have 1,500 or 
fewer employees.

[[Page 55981]]

Consequently, the Commission estimates that the majority of IXCs are 
small entities that may be affected by our proposed rules.
    82. Local Resellers. The SBA has developed a small business size 
standard for the category of Telecommunications Resellers. The 
Telecommunications Resellers industry comprises establishments engaged 
in purchasing access and network capacity from owners and operators of 
telecommunications networks and reselling wired and wireless 
telecommunications services (except satellite) to businesses and 
households. Establishments in this industry resell telecommunications; 
they do not operate transmission facilities and infrastructure. Mobile 
virtual network operators (MVNOs) are included in this industry. Under 
that size standard, such a business is small if it has 1,500 or fewer 
employees. Census data for 2012 show that 1,341 firms provided resale 
services during that year. Of that number, all operated with fewer than 
1,000 employees. Thus, under this category and the associated small 
business size standard, the majority of these prepaid calling card 
providers can be considered small entities.
    83. Toll Resellers. The Commission has not developed a definition 
for Toll Resellers. The closest NAICS Code Category is 
Telecommunications Resellers. The Telecommunications Resellers industry 
comprises establishments engaged in purchasing access and network 
capacity from owners and operators of telecommunications networks and 
reselling wired and wireless telecommunications services (except 
satellite) to businesses and households. Establishments in this 
industry resell telecommunications; they do not operate transmission 
facilities and infrastructure. Mobile virtual network operators (MVNOs) 
are included in this industry. The SBA has developed a small business 
size standard for the category of Telecommunications Resellers. Under 
that size standard, such a business is small if it has 1,500 or fewer 
employees. Census data for 2012 show that 1,341 firms provided resale 
services during that year. Of that number, 1,341 operated with fewer 
than 1,000 employees. Thus, under this category and the associated 
small business size standard, the majority of these resellers can be 
considered small entities. According to Commission data, 881 carriers 
have reported that they are engaged in the provision of toll resale 
services. Of this total, an estimated 857 have 1,500 or fewer 
employees. Consequently, the Commission estimates that the majority of 
toll resellers are small entities.
    84. Other Toll Carriers. Neither the Commission nor the SBA has 
developed a definition for small businesses specifically applicable to 
Other Toll Carriers. This category includes toll carriers that do not 
fall within the categories of interexchange carriers, operator service 
providers, prepaid calling card providers, satellite service carriers, 
or toll resellers. The closest applicable NAICS Code category is for 
Wired Telecommunications Carriers as defined above. Under the 
applicable SBA size standard, such a business is small if it has 1,500 
or fewer employees. Census data for 2012 shows that there were 3,117 
firms that operated that year. Of this total, 3,083 operated with fewer 
than 1,000 employees. Thus, under this category and the associated 
small business size standard, the majority of Other Toll Carriers can 
be considered small. According to internally developed Commission data, 
284 companies reported that their primary telecommunications service 
activity was the provision of other toll carriage. Of these, an 
estimated 279 have 1,500 or fewer employees. Consequently, the 
Commission estimates that most Other Toll Carriers are small entities 
that may be affected by rules adopted pursuant to the Second Further 
Notice.
    85. Prepaid Calling Card Providers. The SBA has developed a 
definition for small businesses within the category of 
Telecommunications Resellers. Under that SBA definition, such a 
business is small if it has 1,500 or fewer employees. According to the 
Commission's Form 499 Filer Database, 500 companies reported that they 
were engaged in the provision of prepaid calling cards. The Commission 
does not have data regarding how many of these 500 companies have 1,500 
or fewer employees. Consequently, the Commission estimates that there 
are 500 or fewer prepaid calling card providers that may be affected by 
the rules.
    86. Wireless Telecommunications Carriers (except Satellite). This 
industry comprises establishments engaged in operating and maintaining 
switching and transmission facilities to provide communications via the 
airwaves. Establishments in this industry have spectrum licenses and 
provide services using that spectrum, such as cellular services, paging 
services, wireless internet access, and wireless video services. The 
appropriate size standard under SBA rules is that such a business is 
small if it has 1,500 or fewer employees. For this industry, U.S. 
Census data for 2012 show that there were 967 firms that operated for 
the entire year. Of this total, 955 firms had employment of 999 or 
fewer employees and 12 had employment of 1000 employees or more. Thus 
under this category and the associated size standard, the Commission 
estimates that the majority of wireless telecommunications carriers 
(except satellite) are small entities.
    87. The Commission's own data--available in its Universal Licensing 
System--indicate that, as of October 25, 2016, there are 280 Cellular 
licensees that will be affected by our actions today. The Commission 
does not know how many of these licensees are small, as the Commission 
does not collect that information for these types of entities. 
Similarly, according to internally developed Commission data, 413 
carriers reported that they were engaged in the provision of wireless 
telephony, including cellular service, Personal Communications Service, 
and Specialized Mobile Radio Telephony services. Of this total, an 
estimated 261 have 1,500 or fewer employees, and 152 have more than 
1,500 employees. Thus, using available data, we estimate that the 
majority of wireless firms can be considered small.
    88. Wireless Communications Services. This service can be used for 
fixed, mobile, radiolocation, and digital audio broadcasting satellite 
uses. The Commission defined ``small business'' for the wireless 
communications services (WCS) auction as an entity with average gross 
revenues of $40 million for each of the three preceding years, and a 
``very small business'' as an entity with average gross revenues of $15 
million for each of the three preceding years. The SBA has approved 
these definitions.
    89. Wireless Telephony. Wireless telephony includes cellular, 
personal communications services, and specialized mobile radio 
telephony carriers. As noted, the SBA has developed a small business 
size standard for Wireless Telecommunications Carriers (except 
Satellite). Under the SBA small business size standard, a business is 
small if it has 1,500 or fewer employees. According to Commission data, 
413 carriers reported that they were engaged in wireless telephony. Of 
these, an estimated 261 have 1,500 or fewer employees and 152 have more 
than 1,500 employees. Therefore, a little less than one third of these 
entities can be considered small.
    90. Cable and Other Subscription Programming. This industry 
comprises establishments primarily engaged in operating studios and 
facilities for the broadcasting of programs on a

[[Page 55982]]

subscription or fee basis. The broadcast programming is typically 
narrowcast in nature (e.g., limited format, such as news, sports, 
education, or youth-oriented). These establishments produce programming 
in their own facilities or acquire programming from external sources. 
The programming material is usually delivered to a third party, such as 
cable systems or direct-to-home satellite systems, for transmission to 
viewers. The SBA has established a size standard for this industry 
stating that a business in this industry is small if it has 1,500 or 
fewer employees. The 2012 Economic Census indicates that 367 firms were 
operational for that entire year. Of this total, 357 operated with less 
than 1,000 employees. Accordingly we conclude that a substantial 
majority of firms in this industry are small under the applicable SBA 
size standard.
    91. Cable Companies and Systems (Rate Regulation). The Commission 
has developed its own small business size standards for the purpose of 
cable rate regulation. Under the Commission's rules, a ``small cable 
company'' is one serving 400,000 or fewer subscribers nationwide. 
Industry data indicate that there are currently 4,600 active cable 
systems in the United States. Of this total, all but eleven cable 
operators nationwide are small under the 400,000-subscriber size 
standard. In addition, under the Commission's rate regulation rules, a 
``small system'' is a cable system serving 15,000 or fewer subscribers. 
Current Commission records show 4,600 cable systems nationwide. Of this 
total, 3,900 cable systems have fewer than 15,000 subscribers, and 700 
systems have 15,000 or more subscribers, based on the same records. 
Thus, under this standard as well, we estimate that most cable systems 
are small entities.
    92. Cable System Operators (Telecom Act Standard). The 
Communications Act also contains a size standard for small cable system 
operators, which is ``a cable operator that, directly or through an 
affiliate, serves in the aggregate fewer than 1 percent of all 
subscribers in the United States and is not affiliated with any entity 
or entities whose gross annual revenues in the aggregate exceed 
$250,000,000.'' There are approximately 52,403,705 cable video 
subscribers in the United States today. Accordingly, an operator 
serving fewer than 524,037 subscribers shall be deemed a small operator 
if its annual revenues, when combined with the total annual revenues of 
all its affiliates, do not exceed $250 million in the aggregate. Based 
on available data, we find that all but nine incumbent cable operators 
are small entities under this size standard. The Commission neither 
requests nor collects information on whether cable system operators are 
affiliated with entities whose gross annual revenues exceed $250 
million. Although it seems certain that some of these cable system 
operators are affiliated with entities whose gross annual revenues 
exceed $250 million, we are unable at this time to estimate with 
greater precision the number of cable system operators that would 
qualify as small cable operators under the definition in the 
Communications Act.
    93. All Other Telecommunications. ``All Other Telecommunications'' 
is defined as follows: This U.S. industry is comprised of 
establishments that are primarily engaged in providing specialized 
telecommunications services, such as satellite tracking, communications 
telemetry, and radar station operation. This industry also includes 
establishments primarily engaged in providing satellite terminal 
stations and associated facilities connected with one or more 
terrestrial systems and capable of transmitting telecommunications to, 
and receiving telecommunications from, satellite systems. 
Establishments providing Internet services or voice over Internet 
protocol (VoIP) services via client-supplied telecommunications 
connections are also included in this industry. The SBA has developed a 
small business size standard for ``All Other Telecommunications,'' 
which consists of all such firms with gross annual receipts of $32.5 
million or less. For this category, census data for 2012 show that 
there were 1,442 firms that operated for the entire year. Of these 
firms, a total of 1,400 had gross annual receipts of less than $25 
million. Consequently, we estimate that the majority of All Other 
Telecommunications firms are small entities that might be affected by 
our action.

D. Description of Projected Reporting, Recordkeeping, and Other 
Compliance Requirements for Small Entities

    94. This NPRM proposes changes to, and seeks comment on, Commission 
rules on Local Number Portability Administration, and Nationwide Number 
Portability (NNP). The NPRM seeks to amend our rules by removing the N-
1 query requirement and proposes to forbear from remaining 
interexchange dialing parity requirements of section 251(b)(3). The 
objectives of the proposed modifications are to remove impediments to 
NNP. As the NPRM seeks comment on rule withdrawal and forbearance, we 
therefore do not adopt new reporting, recordkeeping, or other 
compliance requirements.
    95. As reported in the Final Regulatory Flexibility Analysis (1996 
FRFA) of the 1996 order instituting the dialing parity rules, the 
compliance requirements of the Section 251 dialing parity rules include 
``dialing-parity specific software, hardware, signaling system upgrades 
and necessary consumer education.'' Such compliance entailed the ``use 
of engineering, technical, operational, and accounting skills.'' We 
seek comment on whether withdrawing these proposed rules will enable 
LECs, including small entities, to reduce or eliminate these costs via 
a lesser compliance burden.

E. Steps Taken To Minimize the Significant Economic Impact on Small 
Entities, and Significant Alternatives Considered

    96. The RFA requires an agency to describe any significant 
alternatives that it has considered in reaching its proposed approach, 
which may include the following four alternatives (among others): (1) 
The establishment of differing compliance or reporting requirements or 
timetables that take into account the resources available to small 
entities; (2) the clarification, consolidation, or simplification of 
compliance and reporting requirements under the rules for such small 
entities; (3) the use of performance rather than design standards; and 
(4) an exemption from coverage of the rule, or any part thereof, for 
such small entities.
    97. The 1996 FRFA states that the dialing parity provisions allowed 
``LECs and competing providers of telephone toll service'' including 
small entities ``to not be subject to an array of differing state 
standards and timetables requiring them to research and tailor their 
operations to the unique requirements of each state.'' We seek comment 
as to the extent all LECs, including small entities, will be 
economically impacted by the removal of nationwide provisions.
    98. The 1996 FRFA also explains that as result of the dialing 
parity rules, a carrier could not automatically designate itself as a 
``toll carrier without notifying the customer of the opportunity to 
choose an alternative carrier, one or more of which may be a small 
business.'' We seek comment as to any additional economic burden 
incurred by small entities as a result of the withdrawal of the dialing 
parity rule.

[[Page 55983]]

F. Federal Rules That May Duplicate, Overlap, or Conflict With the 
Proposed Rules

    99. None.

VII. Procedural Matters

A. Deadlines and Filing Procedures

    100. Pursuant to sections 1.415 and 1.419 of the Commission's 
rules, 47 CFR 1.415, 1.419, interested parties may file comments and 
reply comments on or before the dates indicated on the first page of 
this document in Dockets WC 17-244, and WC 13-97. Comments may be filed 
using the Commission's Electronic Comment Filing System (ECFS). See 
Electronic Filing of Documents in Rulemaking Proceedings, 63 FR 24121 
(1998).
    [ssquf] Electronic Filers: Comments may be filed electronically 
using the Internet by accessing the ECFS: http://apps.fcc.gov/ecfs/.
    [ssquf] Paper Filers: Parties who choose to file by paper must file 
an original and one copy of each filing. If more than one docket or 
rulemaking number appears in the caption of this proceeding, filers 
must submit two additional copies for each additional docket or 
rulemaking number.
    Filings can be sent by hand or messenger delivery, by commercial 
overnight courier, or by first-class or overnight U.S. Postal Service 
mail. All filings must be addressed to the Commission's Secretary, 
Office of the Secretary, Federal Communications Commission.
    [ssquf] All hand-delivered or messenger-delivered paper filings for 
the Commission's Secretary must be delivered to FCC Headquarters at 445 
12th St. SW., Room TW-A325, Washington, DC 20554. The filing hours are 
8:00 a.m. to 7:00 p.m. All hand deliveries must be held together with 
rubber bands or fasteners. Any envelopes and boxes must be disposed of 
before entering the building.
    [ssquf] Commercial overnight mail (other than U.S. Postal Service 
Express Mail and Priority Mail) must be sent to 9050 Junction Drive, 
Annapolis Junction, MD 20701.
    [ssquf] U.S. Postal Service first-class, Express, and Priority mail 
must be addressed to 445 12th Street SW., Washington DC 20554.
    [ssquf] People With Disabilities: To request materials in 
accessible formats for people with disabilities (braille, large print, 
electronic files, audio format), send an email to [email protected] or 
call the Consumer & Governmental Affairs Bureau at 202-418-0530 
(voice), 202-418-0432 (TTY).
    101. This proceeding shall be treated as a ``permit-but-disclose'' 
proceeding in accordance with the Commission's ex parte rules. Persons 
making ex parte presentations must file a copy of any written 
presentation or a memorandum summarizing any oral presentation within 
two business days after the presentation (unless a different deadline 
applicable to the Sunshine period applies). Persons making oral ex 
parte presentations are reminded that memoranda summarizing the 
presentation must (1) list all persons attending or otherwise 
participating in the meeting at which the ex parte presentation was 
made, and (2) summarize all data presented and arguments made during 
the presentation. If the presentation consisted in whole or in part of 
the presentation of data or arguments already reflected in the 
presenter's written comments, memoranda or other filings in the 
proceeding, the presenter may provide citations to such data or 
arguments in his or her prior comments, memoranda, or other filings 
(specifying the relevant page and/or paragraph numbers where such data 
or arguments can be found) in lieu of summarizing them in the 
memorandum. Documents shown or given to Commission staff during ex 
parte meetings are deemed to be written ex parte presentations and must 
be filed consistent with rule 1.1206(b). In proceedings governed by 
Rule 1.49(f) or for which the Commission has made available a method of 
electronic filing, written ex parte presentations and memoranda 
summarizing oral ex parte presentations, and all attachments thereto, 
must be filed through the electronic comment filing system available 
for that proceeding, and must be filed in their native format (e.g., 
.doc, .xml, .ppt, searchable .pdf). Participants in this proceeding 
should familiarize themselves with the Commission's ex parte rules.

B. Initial Regulatory Flexibility Analysis

    102. Pursuant to the Regulatory Flexibility Act (RFA), the 
Commission has prepared an Initial Regulatory Flexibility Analysis 
(IRFA) of the possible significant economic impact on small entities of 
the policies and actions considered in this Notice of Proposed 
Rulemaking. The text of the IRFA is set forth in Appendix B. Written 
public comments are requested on this IRFA. Comments must be identified 
as responses to the IRFA and must be filed by the deadlines for comment 
on the Notice of Proposed Rulemaking. The Commission's Consumer and 
Governmental Affairs Bureau, Reference Information Center, will send a 
copy of this Notice of Proposed Rulemaking, including the IRFA, to the 
Chief Counsel for Advocacy of the Small Business Administration (SBA).

C. Paperwork Reduction Act

    103. This document may contain proposed new or modified information 
collection requirements. The Commission, as part of its continuing 
effort to reduce paperwork burdens, invites the general public and the 
Office of Management and Budget (OMB) to comment on the information 
collection requirements contained in this document, as required by the 
Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995, Public Law 104-13. In addition, 
pursuant to the Small Business Paperwork Relief Act of 2002, Public Law 
107-198, we seek specific comment on how we might further reduce the 
information collection burden for small business concerns with fewer 
than 25 employees.

D. Contact Persons

    104. For further information about this proceeding, please contact 
Sherwin Siy, FCC Wireline Competition Bureau, Competition Policy 
Division, Room 5-C225, 445 12th Street SW., Washington, DC 20554, (202) 
418-2783, [email protected].

VIII. Ordering Clauses

    105. Accordingly, it is ordered, pursuant to sections 1, 4(i), 10, 
201(b), and 251(e) of the Communication Act of 1934, as amended, 47 
U.S.C. 151, 154(i), 160, 201(b), and 251(e) that this Notice of 
Proposed Rulemaking and Notice of Inquiry is adopted.
    106. It is further ordered that the Commission's Consumer and 
Governmental Affairs Bureau, Reference Information Center, shall send a 
copy of this Notice of Proposed Rulemaking, including the IRFA, to the 
Chief Counsel for Advocacy of the Small Business Administration.

List of Subjects

47 CFR Part 51

    Interconnection.

47 CFR Part 52

    Numbering.

Federal Communications Commission.
Marlene H. Dortch,
Secretary.

Proposed Rules

    For the reasons set forth above, The Federal Communications 
Commission proposes to amend parts 51 and 52 of Title 47 of the Code of 
Federal Regulations as follows:

[[Page 55984]]

PART 51--INTERCONNECTION

0
1. The authority citation for part 51 continues to read as follows:

    Authority: 47 U.S.C. 151-55, 201-05, 207-09, 218, 220, 225-27, 
251-54, 256, 271, 303(r), 332, 1302.

Subpart C--Obligations of All Local Exchange Carriers

0
2. Amend Sec.  51.205 by revising it to read as follows:


Sec.  51.205  Dialing parity: General.

    A local exchange carrier (LEC) shall provide local dialing parity 
to competing providers of telephone exchange service, with no 
unreasonable dialing delays. Dialing parity shall be provided for 
originating telecommunications services that require dialing to route a 
call.
0
3. Remove Sec.  51.209.


Sec.  51.209  [Removed]

    Remove Sec.  51.209.
0
4. Remove Sec.  51.213


Sec.  51.213  [Removed]

    Remove Sec.  51.213.
0
5. Remove Sec.  51.215.


Sec.  51.215  [Removed]

    Remove Sec.  51.215.

PART 52--NUMBERING

0
6. The authority citation for part 52 continues to read as follows:

    Authority: Secs. 1, 2, 4, 5, 48 Stat. 1066, as amended; 47 
U.S.C. 151, 152, 154 and 155 unless otherwise noted. Interpret or 
apply secs. 3, 4, 201-05, 207-09, 218, 225-27, 251-52, 271 and 332, 
48 Stat. 1070, as amended, 1077; 47 U.S.C. 153, 154, 201-05, 207-09, 
218, 225-27, 251-52, 271 and 332 unless otherwise noted.

Subpart C--Number Portability

0
7. In Sec.  52.26 revise paragraph (a) to read as follows:


Sec.  52.26 NANC  Recommendations on Local Number Portability 
Administration.

    (a) Local number portability administration shall comply with the 
recommendations of the North American Numbering Council (NANC) as set 
forth in the report to the Commission prepared by the NANC's Local 
Number Portability Administration Selection Working Group, dated April 
25, 1997 (Working Group Report) and its appendices, which are 
incorporated by reference pursuant to 5 U.S.C. 552(a) and 1 CFR part 
51. Except that: Sections 7.8 and 7.10 of Appendix D and the following 
portions of Appendix E: Section 7, Issue Statement I of Appendix A, and 
Appendix B in the Working Group Report are not incorporated herein.
* * * * *
[FR Doc. 2017-25458 Filed 11-24-17; 8:45 am]
 BILLING CODE 6712-01-P