At their Commission Business Meeting of May 26th, the Public Service Commission (PSC) issued an Order in Docket No. 2022-141-C, which involves the potential establishment of an area code overlay in the 864 area, as suggested by the North American Numbering Plan Administrator (NANPA), an impartial and non-governmental entity that is a relief planner for South Carolina under the North American Numbering Plan.

NANPA, in its filing, notes that “an all-services distributed overlay is recommended by the Industry for relief of the 864 NPA and if approved by the Commission, a new area code will be added to the same geographic area as the 864 NPA.” This recommendation means that consumers in the 864 area who apply for a phone number in the future may receive a number beginning with a different area code than the current 864 code. The implementation of the new Area Code will mandate that 10-digit dialing be required in the affected area, in line with 10-digit dialing already in place in other parts of South Carolina. No timeline has yet been set for this area code overlay, but NANPA notes in its filing that “the 864 NPA is projected to exhaust its Central Office codes…during the first quarter of 2025 and is in need of relief.”

The Public Service Commission is seeking input on this request from residents of the 864 area, which serves Greenville, Spartanburg, Anderson, Pickens, Oconee, Greenwood, Laurens, Cherokee, Union, Abbeville, Saluda, McCormick, and Newberry Counties. Consumers interested in filing comments or letters of protest can do so by emailing their comments or a completed Letter of Protest form to contact@psc.sc.gov or by sending to 101 Executive Center Drive, Suite 100, Columbia, SC 29210. Comments should be submitted to the PSC before 4:45 p.m. on July 15th, 2022.

More information about this matter can be found in Docket No. 2022-141-C. If you have questions, please reach out to the PSC at 803.896.5100 or at contact@psc.sc.gov.