Portability of phone numbers is a half-year off.
By Mal Leary
Capitol News Service

AUGUSTA – In most of the United States, now people can take their phone numbers, whether conventional or cellular, to any phone service provider.

That option won’t come to Mainers for another six months.

The new Federal Communications Commission policy took effect Monday in only the top 100 markets in the country. Maine and many other rural areas must wait until May 24, 2004.

That six-month delay could work to Maine’s advantage, said Public Advocate Steve Ward. His office represents consumer interests before the Maine Public Utilities Commission.

“We encourage people to go slow and not make any abrupt decisions,” he said. “It’s good that we are not guinea pigs in this new process.”

Ward said there have been news accounts that some phone companies, both wireline and cell, have not set aside the funds authorized by the FCC to accomplish the transition.

The delay may spare Mainers from unforeseen problems that could crop up during implementation of the new rules, Ward said.

“It’s not always good to be first,” he said.

The public advocate’s office is not required to handle consumer complaints about cell phone companies the way it is when consumers have complaints about the traditional PUC-regulated phone companies, Ward said.

“But we try to help anyone that calls and tell them how to get in touch with the FCC,” he said. “And we publish our consumer guide that lists comparative rates of cell phone companies as well as wireline companies in Maine.”

Consumer choice

U.S. Sen. Olympia Snowe, R-Maine, praised the change, even though Mainers won’t benefit immediately.

“In addition to changing wireless carriers, in many cases, consumers will be able to switch from a wireline carrier to a wireless carrier, or vice versa,” Snowe said in a statement. “Implementation of number portability translates into greater competition in the wireless marketplace and increased choices for consumers.”

Snowe noted that while companies operating in Maine have six months to implement the new rules, some may implement them sooner. She urged Mainers who want to take advantage earlier to contact their phone companies to see when they plan to make the change.

State Sen. Chris Hall, D-Bristol, co-chairman of the Legislature’s Utilities Committee, said it may be time for the Legislature to consider broadening the responsibility of the public advocate’s office.

“We have seen some real changes in the way people use their cell phones,” he said. “We have had some discussions of expanding the role of the advocate’s office and this is just one more reason to look at that issue.”

Hall said for a growing number of Mainers, their cell phone is their only phone. Because the FCC pre-empts most of the regulation of cell phone companies, what the advocate’s office can do may be limited, but important, he said.

“I think people deserve having someone advocating for them,” he said, “and really, this is a trend where the whole area of telephony needs to be looked at again. We have cable TV companies providing telephone services and cell companies getting into data transmission.”

Steve Diamond, one of the three Maine PUC members, agreed the changing nature of how communications services are provided and regulated has blurred the lines for regulators. The portability of telephone numbers is the most recent example of that process, he said.

“I think it’s probably a good idea if the Legislature takes a look at this,” he said. “There have been a lot of changes in telecommunications, and more are expected. “

Diamond expects the PUC to discuss the number portability issue and how it affects Mainers before the new federal rules take effect here next May.