Thursday, March 20, 1997 | 11:59 a.m.
By late 1998, Nevada could be split into two area codes.
But Southern Nevada residents may not have to worry about changing their office stationery or business cards.
A spokesman for a telecommunications industry group representing the dozens of communications companies in Nevada said the decision about which area of the state to change to the new area code would be made only after it is determined how to "inconvenience the fewest number of subscribers."
"We don't want to change the area code for the majority of subscribers," said Doug Hescox, Nevada area code relief coordinator.
In other words, Northern Nevada, with its lower population, likely will be changed to the new area code.
A possible wrinkle in that plan, however, could develop if the new area code is 777, which has been proposed. Southern Nevada casino operators may like the sound of that number and be willing to give up 702.
As of July, there were more than 1.1 million people in Clark County, all but 43,000 living in the Las Vegas Valley. County forecasters predict the population of the valley will grow to 2 million within 10 years.
In comparison, the population of Washoe County, which encompasses Reno, Sparks and other communities, is just under 300,000.
Hescox explained that the new area code line could simply be drawn around the boundaries of Clark County, or it could be drawn through Nye County.
"It would be terrible to draw a line through a call volume area where a lot of people call back and forth," Hescox said.
Exactly where the line will be drawn will be determined after a series of public meetings are conducted.
Public comment will be obtained before the industry submits a proposed area code plan to the Nevada Public Service Commission for final approval.
"We hope to submit the plan to the PSC by May, and we hope to get a decision from the PSC by December," Hescox said.
A public hearing is set for 1-3 p.m. and 6:30-8:30 p.m. April 14 at the Sahara West Library, 9600 W. Sahara Ave.
The group also has scheduled hearings in Reno, Elko and Minden.
Sharon Thomas, manager of the PSC's rates and regulatory analysis division, said she expects the commission also will hold public meetings throughout the state on the plan.
Nevada has had the 702 area code since 1947 when area codes were first introduced in the United States. Before that time, all toll calls required operator assistance.
Hescox stressed that a second area code for Nevada will not affect phone bills.
Boundaries for the new area code, as well as the actual three-digit number, will be announced later in 1997 and implemented in December 1998, Hescox said.
Once the new area code is established, there is a six-month "permissive dialing period" when calls can be completed using the old and new area code.
"This will give people a chance to use up their old letterheads and business cards as well as get their equipment updated," Hescox said. "All those automatic dialers will have to be reprogrammed."
Nevada is one of 14 states with a single area code. By 2007 there will be only eight states with a single area code.
Every area code has the capacity to provide 7.9 million telephone numbers. Today, area code 702 serves about 5.1 million phone numbers and is growing at an annual rate of 90,000.
The consumption of Nevada phone numbers is not only being triggered by the Silver State's rapid growth and the introduction of local competition, Hescox said, but by the explosion of fax machines, pagers, cellular phones, modems for Internet access and data communications networks such as ATMs and pay point services, all of which require phone lines.
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