TELECOM Digest OnLine - Sorted: Re: Telephone Area Codes and Prefixes

Re: Telephone Area Codes and Prefixes

Linc Madison (lincmad@suespammers.org)
Sun, 11 Feb 2007 18:45:10 -0800

In article <telecom26.44.1@telecom-digest.org>, <Wesrock@aol.com> wrote:

> In a message dated Sat, 10 Feb 2007 00:10:15 -0600, Neal McLain
> <nmclain@annsgarden.com> writes:

>> Joe Tibiletti <joetib@cox.net> wrote:

>>> I have testified before the Public Utility Commission of Texas --
>>> one of the last states to have this jurisdiction placed in one
>>> organization under state control.

>> What do you mean by "one organization"?

>> If you're referring to an organization that regulates all (or
>> almost all) utilities, Texas isn't the only state. Every state has
>> some sort of utility regulatory agency (although they go by variety
>> of names: http://tinyurl.com/2qx65y ). Indeed, Texas is an oddball
>> in this respect: the TPUC regulates all utilities except natural
>> gas; the Texas Railroad Commission regulates natural gas; and the
>> Texas DOT regulates railroads.

> Joe is correct on his assertion that Texas was one of the last, if
> not the last, state to have a single regulatory body for telephone
> service (and some other public utilities).

> Until the 1960s, telephone regulation in Texas fell under city
> jurisdictioin, and there had to be a separate rate case, and separate
> negotiations, with each city.

Aha! I think the misunderstanding stems from the ambiguity in the
phrase "one of the last states to ..." It can mean either
(A) Everyone else did it first, and finally Texas did last, or
(B) Everyone else has stopped doing it, and Texas is the last
remaining.

I was parsing it the second way, which didn't make sense, since most of
the states have a single state regulatory agency for telephony.

Linc Madison * San Francisco, California * Telecom at Linc Mad d0t c0m
URL: < http://www.lincmad.com > * North American Area Codes & Splits
Read my political blog, "The Third Path" <http://LincMad.blogspot.com>
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