Regulator dials 'e' for 'extension' on Maine’s 207 area code
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Mainer’s iconic 207 area code has been around since 1947.
Maine's 207 statewide area code won't be exhausted until the first quarter of 2027, around 15 months later than previously expected, the state's utilities regulator said Thursday.
Originally, available telephone numbers with the 207 area code were expected to be exhausted by the end of the fourth quarter of 2025, prompting the state Public Utilities Commission to launch probes into the numbering practices of T-Mobile and Verizon Wireless. Verizon Wireless is a division of New York-based Verizon Communications Inc. (NYSE: VZ).
Members of Maine's congressional delegation also weighed in, urging federal authorities to "explore all possibilities" to preserve the number, which has been around since 1947. Fewer than 15 states have a single area code.
In Thursday's announcement, the PUC said ongoing efforts to preserve the 207 area code include working with service providers to return blocks of unused numbers, and facilitating the donation of number resources between providers that limit the number of new blocks of 10,000 codes that are opened.
To date, PUC efforts have resulted in the return of about 677,000 numbers to the numbering pool from unused or slightly used blocks, buying 15 months of extra time before the number's expected exhaustion date.
"These additional months are the direct results of multiple actions taken by dedicated Commission staff who have been persistent in efforts to preserve Maine's single area code," said Philip L. Bartlett III, who chairs Maine's three-member Public Utilities Commission. "That work includes scrutinizing unnecessary requests for numbering resources."
The Hallowell-based regulator said its staff will continue to pursue options for further extending Maine's single area code, "which could not only significantly extend the life, but also serve as a model for other states facing similar area code exhaustion circumstances."
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