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Thousands-Block Pooling Administrator 
Technical Requirements 
May 3, 2012
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Table of Contents
Section Page 
1. Introduction 9
1.1  Background 9
1.2  Purpose 10
1.3  Scope 11
1.4  Attributes 12
1.5  Objectives 12
1.6  Responsibilities 12
1.6.1  Management 12
1.6.2  Performance 13
1.7  Interaction 13
1.7.1  Relationships 13
1.7.2  Assets 13
1.8  Policy Objectives 13
1.8.1  Thousands-Block - NANP Context 14
1.9  Reserved                                                                                                                      14
2. Pooling Administration Requirements 14
2.1  Hours of Operation 14
2.1.1  Contact 15
2.1.2  Responsiveness 15
2.1.3  Holidays 15
2.2  Organization 16
2.3  Staffing 16
2.3.1  Availability 16
2.3.2  Core Hours 16
2.3.3  Physical Location 16
2.3.4  Reserved 17
2.3.5  Travel 17
2.3.6  Experience 17
2.3.7  Conflicts 17
2.4  Subcontractors 17
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2.4.1  Reserved 17
2.4.2  Responsibilities of the Contractor 18
2.4.3  Reserved 18
2.4.4  Substitution 18
2.5  Environment 18
2.5.1  Regulatory 18
2.5.2  Federal Advisory Committee 19
 2.5.3  Industry Activities 19
 2.5.4  Modification of Guidelines 20
2.6  Reserved                                                                                                                      21
2.7  Reserved                                                                                                              21
2.8  Requests for Pooling Information 21
2.8.1   Referrals 21
2.9  Dispute Resolution 22
2.9.1  Responsibilities 22
2.9.2  Sources of Dispute 22
2.9.3  Involvement 22
2.9.4  Process 22
2.9.5  Corrective Action 22
2.10  Audits 23
2.10.1  For Cause Audits of Service Providers 23
2.10.2  Other Audits of Service Providers 23
2.10.3  Guideline Compliance Issues 23
2.10.4  Contractor Audit Obligations 23
2.10.5  FCC-Designated Auditor 24
2.10.6  Office Facilities 24
2.10.7  Additional Obligations 24
2.11  Data Security 24
2.11.1  Secure Work Area 24
2.11.2  Secure Systems 25
2.12  Reserved 25
2.12.1  Reserved 25
2.13  Number Portability Administration Center with Assigned States 25
2.14  Industry Inventory Pool 25
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2.14.1  Pool Inventory Level 26
2.15  Industry Inventory Pool Establishment Timeline 26
2.15.1  Purpose 26
2.15.2  Activities 26
2.15.3  Additional Details 27
2.16  Block Assignments 27
2.16.1  Application Submittals 27
2.16.2  Block Application Supporting Data 27
2.16.3  Source 28
2.16.4  Applicant Treatment 28
2.16.5  Inventory Pool 28
2.16.6  Rate Center Information 28
2.16.7  Required Assignment Processing 29
2.16.8  Problem Resolution Assistance 29
2.16.9  Notification 29
2.17  Management of the Pool Inventory 29
2.17.1  Forecast 29
2.17.2  Data Request Dates 30
2.17.3  Forecast Analysis 30
2.17.4  Reports 30
2.18  Replenishment of the Pool Inventory 30
2.19  Resource Reclamation 31
2.19. 1  Criteria for Reclamation 31
2.19. 2  Administrative Responsibilities 31
2.20 Interfaces with Service Providers, NANPA, NPAC Vendor, BIRRDS/LERG 
Vendor, Regulatory Agencies, and the Media 31
2.20.1  Interface with NANPA 33
2.20.2  Interface with the BIRRDS/LERG Vendor 33
2.20.3  Interface with the NPAC Vendor 33
2.20.4  Interface with Service Providers 33
2.20.5  Interface with Regulatory Agencies 34
2.20.6  Interface with the Media 34
2.21  Reports 35
2.21. 1  Annual Report 35
2.21. 2  Pooling Matrices Report 36
2.21. 3  Report and Document Distribution 36
2.22  Performance Measurements 36
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2.22.1  Assessment Period 36
2.22.2  Remedial Action 36
2.22.3  Pooling Administration Quality Assurance (QA) 36
2.22.4  Contractor Performance Metrics 37
2.22.4.1  Trouble Tickets/Outages 37
2.22.4.2  Change Order and PAS Notifications 37
2.22.4.3  Communications 37
2.22.4.4  Forecasting data on a per-state basis 37
2.22.4.5  Reporting 38
2.22.4.6  Application Processing on a monthly basis 38
2.22.4.7  Reserved 38
2.22.4.8  Reserved 38
2.22.5 Events 38
2.22.6  Additional Input 39
2.23  p-ANI Administration Requirements 36
3.  Pooling System Requirements 39
3.1  Description 39
3.1.1  Confidential Treatment 40
3.1.2  Data Integrity 40
3.1.3  Automated Data Filing Capabilities 40
3.1.4  Automated Data Output Capabilities 41
3.1.5  Automated System Interface with NANPA 41
3.1.6  Alternative Data Capabilities 42
3.2  Characteristics 42
 3.3  System Reliability, Availability, Capacity, and Performance 42
3.3.1  Reserved 43
3.4  System Location 43
3.5  System Facility 43
3.5.1  Facility Characteristics 43
3.5.2  Facility Planning 43
3.5.3  Reserved 43
3.6  System Maintenance 43
3.7  System Security 44
3.8  System Inspection 44
3.9  Web Site 44
3.9.1  Availability and Access 45
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3.9.2  System Responsiveness 45
3.9.3  Out-of-Service 45
3.9.4  Out-of-Service Notification 46
3.9.5  Updates 46
3.9.6  Web Site Help 46
3.9.7  Support and Maintenance 46
3.10  Reserved 46
3.11  System Report Administration 46
3.11.1  System Reports 46
3.11.2  System Report Validation 47
3.11.3  Help Desk 47
3.11.4  Report Distribution 48
3.12  System Testing 48
3.12.1  System Test Plan 48
3.12.2  System Test Results 49
3.13  System Acceptance 49
3.14  System Processing Acknowledgement 49
3.15  User Logon System 49
3.15.1  Logon System Access 49
3.15.2  Logon System Approval 49
3.15.3  Logon System Security Level 49
3.15.4  Reserved 50
3.15.5  Logon System Problems 50
3.15.6  User Access Permission Classes 50
3.15.7  User Functionality 50
3.15.8  Reserved 51
3.16  Unauthorized System Access 51
3.16.1  Data Security 51
3.17  System Disaster Recovery 51
3.17.1  Recovery Costs 51
3.17.2  System Backup 52
3.17.3  System Outage Notification 52
3.18  Non-Performance 52
3.18.1  Final Acceptance 52
3.18.2  Reserved 52
3.18.3  Reserved 52
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3.19  System Documentation 52
3.20  Pooling System Transfer to Successor 52
3.20.1  Transfer Efficiency 53
3.20.2  Reserved 53
3.20.3  Technical Support 53
3.20.4  Documentation 53
3.20.5  Transition Plan 53
3.20.6  Reserved 54
3.20.7  System and Equipment Ownership 54
3.21  System and Equipment Inventory 54
3.22  Reserved 54
4. Contract Data Requirements List (CDRL) 54
4.1 Reserved 54
4.2  Security Plan 54
4.3  System Documentation Plan 54
4.4  Disaster/Continuity of Operations Plan 54
4.5  Statistical Forecasting Plan 54
4.6  Management Reporting Plan 55
4.6.1  Annual 55
4.6.2  Semi-Annual 55
4.6.2.1  Forecasted Demand 55
4.6.2.2  Rate Center Inventory Pool Status 55
4.6.3  Quarterly 55
4.6.3.1  Pooling Matrices 55
4.6.4  Monthly 55
4.6.4.1  Thousands-Block Pooling 55
4.6.4.2  System Performance 55
4.6.4.3  Staffing 55
4.6.5  By Request 55
4.7  System Acceptance Plan 56
4.8  QA Plan 56
4.9  Transition Plan 56
4.10  Maintenance Plan 56
5.0  Required Performance Metrics 56
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Appendix A:  Acronyms, Abbreviations and Definitions 58
Appendix B: Reference Documentation, Technical Standards and Regulatory Orders 61
Appendix C:  Interface Contact Information 64
Appendix D:  Example Pooling Summary Report  65
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Section 1
Introduction
1.1 Background
Pooling of geographic telephone numbers in a number portability environment is a 
number administration and assignment process that allocates numbering resources 
to a shared industry inventory associated with a designated geographic rate center. 
In the United States, thousands-block number pooling involves the allocation of 
blocks of sequential North American Numbering Plan (NANP) telephone numbers 
within the same NPA/Central Office (CO) Code (CO Code or NXX) to different 
service providers, who serve customers within the same NPA rate center.  All ten 
thousand numbers within each NPA/NXX continue to be assigned to one (1) rate 
center, but are allocated among multiple service providers at the thousands-block 
(NXX-X) level.  The numbering resource is allocated from a shared industry 
inventory and is administered in blocks of one thousand numbers (NXX-X) for 
assignment to service providers participating in that rate center.  
The assignment of numbers to service providers in blocks of one thousand (i.e., 
NXX-X) is expected to improve the utilization of number resources.  Further, a pool 
of numbers, if available to all providers serving a defined area, need only be large 
enough to accommodate the collective needs of those providers.
In 2000, the FCC determined that thousands-block number pooling would 
significantly extend the life of the NANP and issued its first Numbering Resource 
Optimization order (FCC 00-104, released March 31, 2000) establishing a “national” 
pooling contractor.  This technical requirements document describes the 
requirements for the “national” pooling contractor.
The following terminology is employed in this document: the “FCC” refers to the 
Federal Communications Commission or its authorized agents; an “auditor” is an 
FCC-designated auditor; “service providers” refers to telecommunications carriers 
that utilize numbering resources to provide or establish telecommunications 
services; “regulatory agencies” refers both to the FCC and the various state public 
utility commissions (PUCs); the “contractor” refers to the vendor selected to be the 
thousands-block pooling administrator; a “subcontractor” refers to an organization 
providing services to the contractor; a “user” is a service provider accessing the 
automated 1K block assignment system; a “constituent” is the most inclusive term 
and can include service providers, Number Portability Administration Center (NPAC) 
vendor, North American Numbering Plan Administrator (NANPA), Local 
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Exchange Routing Guide (LERG)-Traffic Routing Administration (TRA) vendor, 
regulatory agencies, the media and the general public.
The Routing Number Administrator (RNA) is responsible for administering non-
dialable p-ANIs.  This function was added to the Thousands-Block Pooling 
Administrator (PA) contract as a result of Change Order 19 through Contract 
Modification 16 on June 17, 2011. These resources are administered by the RNA 
using the industry-defined forms contained in the P-ANI Administration Guidelines 
created by the Industry Numbering Committee (INC).  In addition to establishing the 
format of the forms, the industry has also prescribed a sequence of events for each 
request, and strict time limits during which these events must occur.
The RNA uses the RNA system (RNAS) to process p-ANI requests.  The RNA 
system supports a web-based graphical user interface (GUI) to assist the RNA in 
administering p-ANIs; it is also used by service providers to request p-ANIs.  The 
RNAS website is www.nationalpani.com.
Users of the RNA system may include: FCC, state commissions, 9-1-1 governing 
authorities, Public Safety Answering Points (PSAPs), 9-1-1 system service 
providers, service providers, service provider consultants, auditors, and the RNA.
1.2 Purpose
The purpose of this document is to define the technical and operational 
requirements, the system requirements, and the functions of the pooling 
administrator contractor.  It also serves as an umbrella document for industry 
guidelines, FCC orders, technical standards and technical requirements that support 
thousands-block number pooling so that the contractor will be able to ascertain the 
full functionality required of the designated national contractor.  Section 1 provides 
an overview of the document itself. Section 2 defines requirements for the contractor 
in performing the pooling administration function. Section 3 is dedicated to defining 
pooling administration system requirements.  Section 4 outlines deliverables.
The technical requirements are contained in several documents.  Should there be 
conflicts, the precedence of documents is as follows: (1) Reference 25, Code of 
Federal Regulations (CFR), Title 47, Volume 3, Parts 40-69, Telecommunications; 
(2) References 1 & 27, FCC Orders; (3) Section C of the Contract, Performance 
Work Statement/Technical Requirements; (4) Reference 2, Industry Numbering 
Committee (INC) Thousands-Block (NXX-X) Pooling Administration Guidelines 
(TBPAG); (5) Reference 6, Industry Numbering Committee (INC) North American 
Numbering Plan Forecast/Utilization Report (NRUF) Guidelines, INC 00-0619-026; 
and (6) Reference 7, Industry Numbering Committee (INC) Central Office Code 
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(NXX) Assignment Guidelines (COCAG), INC 95-0407-008.  See Appendix B for a 
list of these and other related documents. 
This document includes detailed descriptions of the system, functions and services 
described in these requirements.  This information will then be used to evaluate 
contractor responses to the administrative and assignment tasks and functions, as 
well as the system required for thousands-block number pooling.  The contractor 
shall perform the duties of the PA for the designated term of administration. 
References to blocks, pools, or administrator throughout this document are specific 
to thousands-block (NXX-X) number pooling in the United States and Puerto Rico
only, unless otherwise specified.
1.3 Scope
This document defines the PA technical, operational, and system requirements and 
describes the full functionality required of the designated PA.  It also serves as a 
reference document to other resources, such as industry guidelines, FCC orders, 
technical standards, and technical requirements that support the NANP. 
The contractor shall, at the FCC’s discretion, perform the duties of the PA for up to a 
five (5)-year term from the date of award. 
The contractor shall serve as the designated entity responsible for administering 
thousands-block number pools by assigning, managing, forecasting, reporting and 
processing data that will allow service providers in rate centers designated for 
thousands-block number pooling to receive telephone numbers in blocks of 1,000.  
The volume of data and real time access to that data by multiple users requires that 
the contractor obtain and maintain a system that houses pooling-related data.  The 
pooling administration system shall have a web interface to facilitate access and 
data input capabilities, allow for generation of reports, and interface with all 
designated parties.  
In addition, the contractor serves as RNA and is responsible for managing and 
assigning non-dialable p-ANIs (Pseudo-Automatic Identification Numbers) which are 
used to support the routing of wireless and VoIP 9-1-1 calls, out of the 211 NXX and 
511 NXX on a national basis including Puerto Rico.
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1.4 Attributes
The contractor shall be an independent, neutral third party (as defined in Section 
H.3) who shall be responsible for the fair and efficient overall administration of 
pooled NANP and p-ANI numbering resources.  The contractor shall also ensure 
that domestic numbering administration shall be effective, while leveraging the 
expertise and innovation of industry to promote number conservation. 
The contractor’s role is to serve as the neutral block and p-ANI administrator.  As 
stated in CFR 52.20 for Thousands-Block Pooling, the Pooling Administrator shall be 
a non-governmental entity that is impartial and not aligned with any particular 
telecommunication industry segment, and shall comply within the same neutrality 
requirements that the NANPA is subject under this part.  Refer to Commission rule 
52.12, 47 C.F.R. § 52.12 for the NANPA neutrality requirements.
1.5 Objectives
The main objectives of the contractor are to: 
· Provide a standardized application of all administrative pooling guidelines
· Develop tools and implement a system containing both hardware and 
software to facilitate the assignment, tracking, and data reporting 
requirements
· Maintain interfaces with the NANPA, NPAC, service providers, industry 
forums (e.g., INC, NGIIF, CIGRR, etc.), and regulatory agencies
· Maintain and plan for adequate pool inventory numbering resources for the 
short and long term
· Manage and assign non-dialable p-ANIs out of the 211 NXX and 511 NXX to 
support the routing of wireless and VoIP 9-1-1 calls.
1.6 Responsibilities
The contractor shall perform the day-to-day number resource assignment and 
administrative activities with a long-term focus, as well as interact with the NANPA 
and the NPAC vendor.  The contractor shall also provide and maintain a system to 
support all day-to-day and long- term pooling functions.  
1.6.1 Management
The contractor shall implement a planned management approach utilizing effective 
forecasting and management skills in order to make the industry aware of the 
availability of numbering resources to meet the industry’s current and future needs
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and to support the NANPA’s overall responsibility to promote the continued viability 
of the NANP resource.  
1.6.2 Performance
The contractor shall be responsible for maintaining the security, reliability, 
performance, and flexibility of the pooling system.  Performance specification may 
be found in the FCC CYBER SECURITY PROGRAM.  The system shall be user 
friendly and not impose a burden on users.  The system shall protect the sensitive 
nature of any information provided by service providers, NANPA or the NPAC 
vendor.  
1.7 Interaction
The contractor, like the NANPA, shall be responsible for establishing and 
maintaining relationships with appropriate governmental and regulatory bodies, e.g., 
FCC and state regulatory agencies, and addressing policy directives from these 
bodies.  
1.7.1 Relationships
These and other relationships require that the contractor have the necessary 
administrative staff to handle the legal, financial, technical, administrative, 
operational, industry, and regulatory issues relevant to the management of all 
pooled numbering resources.  
1.7.2 Assets
The contractor shall have the necessary equipment, facilities, and proper billing 
arrangements to manage the pooled resources.  
1.8 Policy Objectives
The contractor shall adhere to the following broad policy objectives: 
· Shall seek to facilitate entry into the communications marketplace by making 
numbering resources available on an efficient and timely basis to 
communications service providers
· Shall not unduly favor or disadvantage any particular industry segment or 
group of consumers
· Shall not unduly favor one (1) technology over another.
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1.8.1 Thousands-Block - NANP Context
At all times the contractor shall understand that: 
· The functions of Central Office (CO) Code Administration, NPA Assignment, 
and Relief Planning are among the duties currently being performed by the 
NANPA 
· Thousands-blocks (NXX-X) are North American Numbering Plan (NANP) 
resources
· Thousands-block pooling administration entails similar collateral 
responsibilities as does CO code administration, such as data collection, 
forecasting, data security, and reporting  
· Existing obligations and agreements related to national numbering policy and 
administration in a CO (NXX) code environment shall also be applied in a 
similar manner when administering pooled (NXX-X) resources.
1.9 Reserved
Section 2
Pooling Administration Requirements
These functional requirements describe the administrative tasks and sub-
components of the contractor’s responsibilities and duties.  This is not an all-
inclusive list.  The contractor should also refer to regulatory orders issued by the 
FCC, related industry guidelines, pooling administrator documentation, technical 
standards, and North American Numbering Council (NANC)-related NPAC 
documentation. Specific reference documentation is listed in Appendix B.  
The contractor shall describe its commitment, as well as a description of how it will 
adhere, to these functional requirements.  
2.1 Hours of Operation
The contractor shall be available a minimum of five (5) days a week (Monday-
Friday), from 5 AM to 5 PM Pacific Time.  
The phone number to be called and the areas that should use this number should be 
clearly identified by region (i.e. Alaska, Hawaii, Puerto Rico & Guam).
The contractor is required to give a 24-hour notice to the Industry on any exception 
to the above.
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2.1.1 Contact
The contractor shall provide mechanisms; e.g., World Wide Web, voicemail, email, 
and facsimile, to be accessible on a 24-hour basis.
With email, the contractor shall have the capability of transmitting and receiving 
email messages with and without attached files.  The contractor shall provide 
“firewall” protective screening of all incoming email messages and attachments 
based on a security profile established by the contractor and approved by the FCC.  
The contractor shall additionally provide virus protection software on all devices that 
receive/send email.  The contractor shall be expected to maintain the most recently 
updated version of virus software as defined by the software provider. Any 
upgrades/changes that would cause incompatibility with the general industry will be 
communicated to the industry no less than 180 days prior to implementation.  
With facsimile, the contractor shall provide the capability of transmitting and 
receiving International Telecommunications Union (ITU) G.3 and G.4 facsimiles.  
2.1.2 Responsiveness
The contractor shall respond within one (1) business day to general inquiries or 
questions including those made outside the normal business hours.  This will include 
emails, facsimiles and voicemails.  All emails, facsimiles and voicemails, whether 
received or responded to outside the normal business hours will be subject to a 
performance metric and process to be approved by the FCC or its designee.  All 
exceptions need to be noted and brought to the attention of management.
2.1.3 Holidays
The contractor shall observe U.S. holidays.  The following is a list of holidays that 
the contractor shall observe: 
· New Year’s Day
· Memorial Day
· Independence Day
· Labor Day
· Thanksgiving Day
· Day after Thanksgiving*
· Christmas Day
*Not open for business, but the Help Desk shall be open and this shall be 
considered a business day for day counts on processing. Contractor shall be open 
for business on all other business days.
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On an annual basis, the contractor shall post a list of the holidays observed and the 
calendar dates of those holidays on the PA web site.  
2.2 Organization 
The contractor shall ensure that the pooling administration organization shall not be 
impacted by other functions that may be performed by the contractor’s company.  
2.3 Staffing
Pooling administration staffing shall be at appropriate levels to ensure that the 
contractor can efficiently perform the functions as identified.
The contractor shall file an initial staffing report at the start of the contract which 
shall include numbers by labor category.  Thereafter, the contractor will then advise 
the FCC as no change on a monthly basis.  In the event of a change, the report shall 
show shortages and overages, and yearly turnover rate.
2.3.1 Availability
Staff shall be available a minimum of five (5) days a week, as defined in Section 2.1
of this document.  
However, since block applicants and block holders are located in multiple time 
zones, the contractor shall provide a mechanism (e.g., voicemail, email, facsimile) to 
be accessible on a 24-hour basis in order to meet the needs of all of its clients.   
The contractor is required to obtain prior approval from the FCC or its designee to 
any exception to the above. 
2.3.2 Core Hours
Core business hours for the contractor shall fall between 8:00 am and 5:00 PM 
Monday through Friday local time, excluding recognized holidays.  
However, if circumstances warrant, the contractor shall be available at other times to 
meet the needs of the industry.  
2.3.3 Physical Location
The physical location of the administration facility shall be at the discretion of the 
contractor as long as it is located within the continental United States (CONUS). 
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2.3.4 Reserved
2.3.5 Travel
Contractor staff shall be able to travel, when necessary, to meet the needs of the 
industry (e.g., Industry Numbering Committee (INC), NANC, conduct pooling 
administration education meetings, NPA jeopardy situations).  
2.3.6 Experience
The staff shall be trained or have equivalent experience in the areas of customer 
service and information technology, including, but not limited to:
· Email, web-based software applications and navigation tools, and Internet 
browsers 
· Telephone and call tracking systems and tools
· Problem and change tracking systems and tools 
· Ongoing training
· Sending and receiving facsimile communications
· Database retrieval.
2.3.7 Conflicts
Staff members of the contractor may not represent the interests of the contractor’s 
parent company in any respect.  See Appendix B, Reference 1, FCC 00-104, 
paragraph 154 and the conflicts provisions in Section H.3.
Conversely, neither representatives of the contractor’s parent company nor any 
divisions or departments thereof that are not direct, 100% dedicated employees of 
the contractor, may represent the interests of the contractor.  
2.4 Subcontractors
Subcontractors may be used to perform work under this contract.  Subcontracting 
with small businesses will be in accordance with FAR 52.219-9, Small Business 
Subcontracting Plan.  
2.4.1 Reserved
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2.4.2 Responsibilities of the Contractor
The contractor shall provide the following information to the FCC Contracting Officer 
concerning each prospective subcontractor within five (5) business days of the date 
of official selection or within 30 calendar days of hiring any subcontractor:  
· Complete name of the subcontractor
· Complete address of the subcontractor
· Type of work the subcontractor will be performing
· Percentage of the work that the subcontractor will be providing
· Evidence of the work the subcontractor will be providing
· A written statement, signed by each subcontractor, which clearly verifies that 
the subcontractor is committed to render the services required by the contract 
· Evidence, as set out in relevant sections of this Request for Proposals (RFP), 
that the subcontractor meets all applicable neutrality requirements
· Written proof that the subcontractor has executed a non-disclosure 
agreement.
2.4.3 Reserved
2.4.4 Substitution
The substitution of one (1) subcontractor for another may be made only with the 
written consent of the FCC.
2.5 Environment
2.5.1  Regulatory
The FCC has authority over numbering within the United States.  The other NANP 
member nations exercise similar regulatory jurisdiction.
The FCC has delegated specific authority to state regulatory agencies in the United 
States.  All states have been delegated authority over NPA Relief.  In addition, some 
states have been given authority to trial certain number conservation measures.  
They have also been granted authority to obtain data, reclaim resources, and 
establish and enforce number allocation standards. 
In the future, State and/or Federal regulatory authorities may issue new rules, 
requirements or policy directives, which may increase, decrease or otherwise affect 
the functions to be performed by the contractor. Within ten calendar days of a 
regulatory directive the contractor shall provide to the FCC and the NANC its 
interpretation of the change, its impact upon service, the date the new change is 
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proposed to become effective, what steps in current procedures need to change and 
when any new forms or procedures will be required.  
2.5.2 Federal Advisory Committee
The North American Numbering Council (NANC) is a Federal Advisory Committee 
established pursuant to the United States Federal Advisory Committee Act, 5 
U.S.C., App. 2 (1988) (FACA).  The NANC was established to advise the FCC on 
issues related to NANP Administration, and to advise the Commission on local 
number portability (LNP) administration issues.  The NANC develops policy 
recommendations on numbering issues, initially resolves disputes, and provides 
guidance to the numbering administrators.
The NANC’s charter under the FACA provides that, in carrying out its 
responsibilities, the NANC shall ensure that NANP Administration supports identified 
policy objectives.  The NANC shall ensure that the contractor:
· Facilitates entry into the communications marketplace by making numbering 
resources available on an efficient, timely basis to communications service 
providers 
· Does not unduly favor or disfavor any particular industry segment or group of 
consumers 
· Does not unduly favor one (1) technology over another
· Gives consumers easy access to the public switched telephone network
· Ensures that the interests of all NANP member countries are addressed fairly 
and efficiently, fostering continued integration of the NANP across NANP 
member countries  
2.5.3 Industry Activities
The industry develops number administration guidelines for the United States based 
on industry consensus and regulatory direction.  The INC, operating under the 
auspices of the Alliance for Telecommunications Industry Solutions (ATIS), is the 
industry forum established to develop such guidelines.  The mission of the INC is to 
provide a forum to address and resolve industry-wide technical issues associated 
with the planning, administration, allocation, assignment and use of numbering 
resources and related dialing considerations for public telecommunications within 
the NANP area.  
INC guidelines incorporate FCC requirements with technical and operational 
principles.  The guidelines also recognize the existence of specific regulations in 
states where FCC-delegated authority has been granted.  
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Industry guidelines and regulatory directives are subject to change throughout the 
contractor’s Term of Administration.
The contractor shall administer numbering resources in accordance with the 
guidelines and properly executed regulatory directives which take precedence over 
industry guidelines. 
2.5.4 Modification of Guidelines
The contractor shall participate in the development and modification of guidelines 
and procedures, which may or may not affect the performance of the contractor 
functions.  These changes may come from regulatory directives and/or industry-
initiated modifications to guidelines.  In addition, new guidelines may be developed 
as appropriate to comply with regulatory directives.  The contractor shall implement 
any changes determined to be consistent with regulatory directives. 
The contractor shall:
· Provide, in real time, technical guidance to ensure processes and procedures 
are effective in meeting the goals of the change.
· Provide issues and contributions, and be prepared to discuss at INC 
meetings how the proposed change promotes numbering policy and/or 
benefits the NANP and how the change will affect the PA’s duties, 
obligations, and accountability.
· Assess and share in real time (i.e., during discussion) the cost implications 
and administrative impact of the change upon the PA’s duties and 
responsibilities in sufficient detail as needed by the INC.
Within seven (7) business days of a change, the contractor shall provide its 
interpretation of the change, its impact upon service, the date the new change is 
proposed to become effective, what steps in current procedures need to change and 
when any new forms or procedures will be required.  The contractor shall provide 
this information to the FCC and the NANC.  When the INC places any changes to its 
guidelines in initial closure, the contractor shall submit an assessment regarding the 
impact of scope of work, time and costs to the INC, the NANC and the FCC within 
30 days.
The contractor shall post changes in procedures on its web site prior to the change 
taking effect.
The NANC shall be consulted at the FCC’s discretion regarding the suggested 
implementation date to determine the likely impact on service provider processes 
and systems (i.e., whether it would be unduly burdensome or would unfairly 
21
disadvantage any service provider or group of service providers per the contractor’s 
obligations and NANP administrative principles).
Specifically, the contractor shall:
· Notify all interested parties when guidelines have changed.
· Interpret guideline changes and impact upon processes.
· Identify implementation date or effective date.
· Provide notification of new forms or tools that may be required.
· Identify a Single Point of Contact (SPOC) within the contractor’s staff to 
answer questions.
· Accept, process, and verify the accuracy of applications for blocks in 
accordance with regulatory requirements and industry guidelines.
· Contact code applicant as necessary to gain clarification or additional 
information in order to process the application when first submitted.
· Review entire application, identifying all errors and omissions when first 
submitted.
· Provide information or location of tools and contacts to assist applicants in 
properly completing applications for new numbering resources, changes and 
disconnects.
2.6 Reserved
2.7 Reserved
2.8 Requests for Pooling Information
The contractor shall, upon request, provide information and answer questions 
regarding thousands-block number pooling administration processes, procedures, 
interfaces, and services within one (1) business day.  The contractor shall, upon 
request, provide new entrants and all other service providers with assistance in 
understanding how to implement the procedures and processes used by applicants 
to obtain and maintain numbering resources, report utilization and all other 
obligations required to be conducted by resource assignees.
2.8.1 Referrals
In addition, the contractor shall provide, within one (1) business day of receipt of a 
request, information on how to obtain documents related to pooling, including 
guidelines, by either referring the requestor to web sites where the information is 
available or by providing electronic copies of the information via e-mail to the 
requestor.  
22
2.9 Dispute Resolution
Disputes may arise within industry numbering activities and the contractor shall 
participate in dispute resolution by providing guidance and/or historical data.  
2.9.1 Responsibilities
The contractor shall, in all cases, follow the FCC rules and pooling guidelines that 
are in effect at the time that the dispute arises.
The contractor shall be responsible for expenses that are incurred in achieving 
compliance with any law, regulation, audit or contract requirements.  
2.9.2 Sources of Dispute
These disputes could arise from a variety of sources including the performance of 
the NANP activities, from industry forum activities, from conflicting government or 
regulatory policy directives or directly from the FCC.  
2.9.3 Involvement
The extent to which the contractor is involved in the resolution of disputes shall 
depend on the nature and origin of the dispute.  
2.9.4 Process
If a performance problem is identified by a telecommunications industry participant, 
the contractor shall notify the FCC and the NANC, or its designated oversight 
committee, of the problem within one (1) business day.  The contractor shall 
investigate the problem and report back within a period of not more than 10 
business days from the date of the complaint, to the FCC, the NANC, and to the 
telecommunications industry participant on the results of such investigation and any 
corrective action taken or recommended to be taken. 
2.9.5 Corrective Action
The contractor, in coordination with the FCC, shall take any necessary corrective 
action within 30 calendar days of the complaint.  
23
2.10 Audits
The contractor and service providers shall be subject to audits to verify their 
compliance with guidelines and regulations relating to all applicable areas of number 
administration.
2.10.1 For Cause Audits of Service Providers
In the performance of its numbering administration duties and in meeting its 
responsibilities, the contractor may encounter situations that may alert it to a service 
provider’s possible noncompliance with the industry guidelines.  This noncompliance 
warrants the need for a “For Cause” audit. 
In these situations, the contractor shall document its observations and forward 
relevant information to the FCC, service provider, and appropriate state commission. 
The contractor shall maintain the confidentiality of all requested information 
throughout the auditing process.
2.10.2  Other Audits of Service Providers
The contractor shall be required to provide specific data to an FCC or FCC 
designated auditor in order to facilitate the audit of a service provider.    
2.10.3  Guideline Compliance Issues
The contractor may encounter situations in which a service provider, the LERG or 
the NANPA/NPAC that is not in compliance with FCC rules or orders or industry 
guidelines.  
When a noncompliance situation is suspected, the contractor shall, prior to fulfilling 
an assignment request, request additional service provider information from other 
administrators, including the NANPA and/or the applicant or from other sources as 
necessary to determine if the service provider is compliant with industry guidelines 
and regulatory rules and directives.  The contractor shall evaluate the information 
and document its determination if the assignment request should be granted or 
denied.  
2.10.4 Contractor Audit Obligations
Note that the contractor has “service provider compliance verification obligations” in 
the same respect as does the NANPA.  This means that they shall fulfill these 
obligations in a non-discriminatory fashion in connection with a service provider’s 
24
application for resources and, if necessary, verify compliance prior to fulfilling any 
block application request.  
2.10.5 FCC-Designated Auditor
To facilitate the auditing of carrier compliance with FCC rules and orders and 
industry guidelines, the contractor shall provide access to the FCC-designated 
Auditor and/or the FCC or its designees to:  
· Contractor’s staff
· Books and records and supporting documentation as requested by the FCC 
or FCC-designated auditor. 
2.10.6 Office Facilities
For a reasonable period of time, the contractor shall provide to the FCC-designated
auditor office space, office furnishings, telephone and facsimile service, utilities, 
office-related equipment, and duplicating services that FCC-designated auditors 
may require to perform audits.  
2.10.7 Additional Obligations
The contractor is subject to the contracts clauses provisions in Section I of the 
solicitation.
2.11 Data Security
Because of the proprietary and/or sensitive nature of some information that may be 
sent to the contractor, proper security measures shall be taken. 
The contractor shall provide proposed pooling administration security measures.  
These measures shall be in conformance with Appendix B, Reference 16, FCC 
Cyber Security Program.
The contractor is additionally subject to the security provisions in Section H.    
2.11.1 Secure Work Area
This includes the establishment of a secured work area with limited access and 
secured record retention practices.  
25
2.11.2 Secure Systems
In addition, appropriate security shall be provided for any and all computer systems 
that contain number pooling assignment information and proprietary applicant 
information, including any system that is connected to any telecommunications 
network.  
2.12  Reserved
2.12.1  Reserved
2.13 Number Portability Administration Center with Assigned States
The following list identifies each of the number portability NPAC regions.  The list 
also contains the states that are associated with each of the seven (7) NPAC 
regions in the United States.  There is one (1) Limited Liability Corporation (LLC) 
that manages the contractual relationship with the NPAC vendor, and it shall be 
contacted by the contractor to coordinate interfaces with the NPAC.  
MID-ATLANTIC REGION:  New Jersey, Pennsylvania, Maryland, Delaware, West 
Virginia, Virginia, District of Columbia
MIDWEST REGION:  Illinois, Indiana, Ohio, Michigan, Wisconsin
SOUTHWEST REGION:  Missouri, Oklahoma, Kansas, Texas, Arkansas
WEST COAST REGION:  California, Nevada, Hawaii
WESTERN REGION:  Washington, Oregon, Montana, Idaho, Utah, Arizona, 
Wyoming, Colorado, New Mexico, North Dakota, South Dakota, Nebraska, 
Minnesota, Iowa, Alaska
SOUTHEAST REGION:  Kentucky, Tennessee, North Carolina, South Carolina, 
Louisiana, Mississippi, Alabama, Georgia, Florida, Puerto Rico
NORTHEAST REGION:  Maine, New Hampshire, Vermont, Connecticut, Rhode 
Island, New York, Massachusetts
2.14  Industry Inventory Pool
The contractor shall be responsible for all activities associated with the industry 
inventory pool establishment and on-going maintenance.  The objective of the 
26
industry inventory pool shall be to maintain sufficient blocks of 1,000 numbers to 
ensure that all participating service providers’ requirements can be met.  
2.14.1 Pool Inventory Level
The quantity of thousand blocks that need to be maintained in the inventory pool 
should be determined using the following criteria:  
· The anticipated assignment rate of thousand blocks from the inventory pool
· No more than a six (6)-month inventory level
· The contractor’s analysis on all forecasts filed for each rate center inventory 
pool
The contractor should make every attempt to have a sufficient quantity of blocks 
available for assignment to satisfy demand. 
2.15  Industry Inventory Pool Establishment Timeline
The contractor shall be responsible for developing the inventory pool implementation 
timeline in consultation with the industry, in conformance with applicable state or 
FCC order.  This timeline contains all the steps and dates that participating service 
providers shall be required to meet in order to implement thousands-block number 
pooling in a designated pooling rate center. 
2.15.1 Purpose
The timeline shall specifically define the rate centers that have not established 
thousands-block number pooling. 
2.15.2 Activities
The timeline shall include the following activities:
· Designation of the pooling rollout schedule 90 calendar days prior to the start 
of pooling in a rate center 
· First or Supplemental Implementation Meeting 
· Forecast Report Date
· Block Protection Date
· Block Identification Date 
· Date for completion of the industry inventory pool surplus or deficiency 
· Block Donation Date 
· Pool Start and Block Allocation Date 
· Accounting for all blocks with ten percent or less contamination. 
27
2.15.3 Additional Details
Additional details regarding requirements for establishing the industry inventory pool 
can be found in Appendix B, Reference 2, Industry Numbering Committee (INC)  
Thousands-Block (NXX-X) Pooling Administration Guidelines 
2.16 Block Assignments
Participating service providers shall submit application(s) for block assignment(s) to 
the contractor after the rate center inventory pool start date.  
The contractor shall:
· Accept, process, and verify the accuracy of all applications for thousands-
blocks and CO Codes in accordance with regulatory requirements and 
industry guidelines.
· Contact block/code applicant as necessary to gain clarification or additional 
information in order to process the application when first submitted.
· Review entire application, identifying all errors and omissions when first 
submitted.
· Provide information or location of tools and contacts to assist applicants in 
properly completing applications for new, change and disconnect requests. 
2.16.1 Application Submittals
Block applications shall be transmittable through the Pooling Administration System 
(PAS) which can be found on the vendor’s website, or via email.   
2.16.2  Block Application Supporting Data  
Service providers are required to furnish Months to Exhaust (MTE) worksheets with 
each growth application.  The contractor shall be responsible for assessing the block 
applicant’s application to verify that it meets all requirements in order to have a 
block(s) assigned.  
At a minimum: 
1. Block applicants shall be licensed or certified to operate in the rate center, and, if 
required, demonstrate that all applicable regulatory requirements have been met 
(e.g., facilities readiness criteria).  
2. Block applicants shall submit a Months to Exhaust (MTE) worksheet for telephone 
numbers (TNs) with growth block applications.  
28
3. Block applicants shall have filed a current NRUF for the associated requested rate 
center and/or NPA with the NANPA, and a current pooling forecast with the 
contractor.  
4. Block applicants shall be confirmed by the contractor, with the NANPA, that the 
service provider is in good standing and that no known ineligibility conditions exist 
(or are under investigation) in the pooling area in which the service provider is 
seeking resources prior to assigning resources to that service provider.  
2.16.3 Source
Applications shall be assigned from both contaminated (10% or less) and non-
contaminated inventoried pooled blocks.
Contamination occurs when at least one (1) telephone number within a donated 
thousand block is not available for assignment to customers of the block holder.  
2.16.4 Applicant Treatment
The contractor shall be responsible for ensuring that blocks are assigned in a fair 
and non-discriminatory manner.  In addition, information requested from participating 
service providers should be kept to a minimum and should be uniform for all block 
applicants. 
The contractor shall time-stamp all applications.  All applications must be processed 
within seven (7) calendar days.  If for any reason an application is suspended, the 
contractor shall detail the reasons for such suspension and provide the procedure 
for escalation to clear the suspension.
2.16.5 Inventory Pool
Block assignments shall be made from NPA-NXX codes assigned to a single rate 
center inventory pool.  The inventory pool shall be comprised of a rate center 
boundary, which covers the same geographic area.  Different geographic rate 
centers shall maintain separate inventory pools.  
2.16.6 Rate Center Information
The contractor shall maintain a current listing of designated rate centers selected for 
pooling implementation.  Therefore the pooling administration system shall be 
capable of implementing additional rate centers, modifying rate centers or their 
pooling status, or deleting rate centers.  
29
2.16.7 Required Assignment Processing
After the contractor has made a block assignment, the contractor shall enter the 
necessary information into the Business Integrated Rating and Routing Database 
System (BIRRDS) to allow the service provider to build the necessary block 
record(s) in BIRRDS for LERG update.
The contractor’s ability to interface with the BIRRDS database is dependent upon 
completing arrangements with Telcordia Technologies.  
The LERG and BIRRDS are registered trademarks of Telcordia Technologies.   
2.16.8 Problem Resolution Assistance
The contractor shall also use these and all other records available to the contractor 
to assist the NANPA, service providers and/or regulators in resolving customer 
complaints as the result of call completion failures, misrouting and/or service 
outages.  Although proprietary data cannot be disclosed to other parties, the 
contractor will provide all other information and referral contacts to requesting 
parties within a timeframe that is agreed upon between the contractor and the 
requesting party based upon the urgency of the failure.  The contractor may be 
asked to contact and/or provide proprietary information to the owner of the 
information if for example, the only way to contact or view the proprietary information 
was by the contractor contacting the party and asking them to call and/or cooperate 
with others who need information that they themselves can only provide for the 
purposes of resolving a failure. 
2.16.9 Notification
The contractor shall notify the NPAC of all block assignments to ensure that the 
appropriate porting activity and industry notification occurs.  
2.17  Management of the Pool Inventory
The contractor shall provide a mechanism for carriers to replenish the six (6)-month 
inventory pool for each rate center.
2.17.1 Forecast
The contractor shall use service providers’ forecast data to size and manage each 
rate center pool and shall pass this data on to the NANPA.  
30
Service providers participating in pooling shall submit forecasted demand reports 
semi-annually to the contractor.  The contractor shall use this data to size and 
manage each rate center pool and shall pass this data on to the NANPA using Form 
502.
2.17.2 Data Request Dates
The NRUF data request shall be consistent with the NRUF reporting dates. The 
NANPA shall receive at least semi-annually from the contractor pooling forecast 
data submitted by service providers pursuant to the INC Guidelines.  
2.17.3 Forecast Analysis
The contractor shall use carrier forecasts to ensure that carriers are notified when 
there are insufficient blocks available to meet the expected applications from 
participating service providers in each rate center pool inventory
2.17.4 Reports
The contractor will provide aggregated block holder forecast data for each pool to 
the NANPA for consideration in NPA relief and NRUF reporting activities.  
Regulatory authorities may request access to pool data.  
2.18 Replenishment of the Pool Inventory
The contractor is responsible for monitoring each rate center pool and providing a 
mechanism for carriers to replenish and maintain a six (6)-month supply of 
assignable thousands-blocks (industry level inventory) in each rate center pool.  The 
aggregate SP forecast submitted during each NRUF cycle, is to be used to 
determine the appropriate level of inventory.
When the contractor first realizes that the amount of inventory in each rate center 
pool may – in the future – fall below the projected six (6)-month forecast, the 
contractor will begin the replenishment process in accordance with the INC TBPAG.  
The contractor’s efforts will include, but shall not be limited to:
· Send emails to service providers in the affected rate center pool and request 
voluntary donations
· Check with service providers who have a forecast on file for the affected rate 
center to see if one is qualified to become a Code Holder – provided the 
31
aggregated demand for blocks in the pool meets the MTE/utilization 
requirements.
2.19 Resource Reclamation
The contractor shall be responsible for initiating the reclamation of assigned blocks 
that have not met the required criteria to retain the assigned block.  
2.19. 1 Criteria for Reclamation
Specific criteria for block reclamation can be found in the INC guidelines (Appendix 
B, Reference 2, Industry Numbering Committee (INC) Thousands-Block (NXX-X) 
Pooling Administration Guidelines) 
.
2.19.2 Administrative Responsibilities
At a minimum, the contractor shall be responsible for:
· Applying the criteria to any blocks subject to reclamation
· Clarifying any alleged non-use or misuse of an assigned block
· Notifying the service provider that a block is subject to reclamation using the 
form in Appendix B, Reference 2, Thousands-Block (NXX-X) Pooling 
Administration Guidelines, Attachment 5/Part 5, and that the block will be 
available shortly for reassignment  
· Entering disconnect information into BIRRDS.
· Notification to the NPAC
· If appropriate, notify and coordinate reclamation efforts with the NANPA and 
appropriate regulatory bodies.
2.20  Interfaces with Service Providers, NANPA, NPAC Vendor, BIRRDS/LERG 
Vendor, Regulatory Agencies, and the Media  
The contractor shall interact with the NANPA, the NPAC vendor, the LERG vendor, 
and with each service provider participating in thousands-block number pooling.  
The contractor also shall also interact with the news media, as well as state and 
federal regulatory bodies concerned with numbering matters.  These interfaces are 
depicted in Figure 1.  
Information and data shared with the news media shall be factual and previously 
made known to the industry and regulators prior to disclosure.  
32
Refer to Appendix C in this document for current contact information for the NANPA, 
NPAC and BIRRDS/LERG vendors.
The contractor shall provide the following constituency interfaces: 
Constituent Interface
Service providers  Web, email, facsimile
NPAC Vendor Email, facsimile
NANPA Email, facsimile, mechanized interface
BIRRDS/LERG Vendor Web, dial-up, email 
Regulatory agencies Web, email, facsimile
Media & general public Web, email, facsimile
More detailed discussion of the duties and interactions with other constituents can 
be found elsewhere in this document (Appendix B, Reference 2, Industry Numbering 
Committee (INC) Thousands-Block (NXX-X) Pooling Administration Guidelines) 
Pooling
Administration
Web Site
Service
Providers
NPAC
NANPA/NAS
Media
and
General
Public
Regulators
Pooling
Administration
System
Pooling
Application
Processing and
Support
BIRRDS/LERG
GInterface
Information and
Report Interface
Administrative Interface
Figure 1
Processing Interface
33
The arrows depict the Pooling Administrator’s data flow arrangements.
Figure 1.  Thousands-Block Pooling Interface Arrangements  
2.20.1 Interface with NANPA
The interface will be between the PAS and NAS (See Section 3.1.5 for specific 
transitions this interface must provide).  The interface will be used to forward service 
providers’ NXX requests (and those made at the behest of the contractor) to 
NANPA, to receive NXX assignments consequently made by the NANPA, and to 
receive from NANPA the NRUF forecasting and utilization data for each pooled rate 
center based on information submitted by each pool participant.  
2.20.2 Interface with the BIRRDS/LERG Vendor  
The contractor shall have access to BIRRDS to perform its administrative functions.  
The BIRRDS’ interface shall be web or dial-up modem access.  The interface shall 
be used to enter data into the BIRRDS for pooled block assignments. (The LERG is 
the output product of data entered into BIRRDS.)  This interface shall also be used 
to view NPA-XXX-X data, as needed.  The contractor shall make arrangements 
directly with Telcordia for BIRRDS access and to also obtain the LERG.  
2.20.3 Interface with the NPAC Vendor
The NPAC vendor interface shall be email, or any other interface which the 
contractor and NPAC Vendor shall agree upon and obtain approval on from the 
FCC.  The interface shall be used to notify the NPAC vendor about blocks that are 
being assigned, and to receive acknowledgement from the NPAC vendor that the 
block assignment information has been received.  It shall also be used to receive 
notification from the NPAC vendor that it has broadcast the block assignment data.  
2.20.4 Interface with Service Providers
This interface shall have several forms. One interface shall be the same as the 
service provider/NANPA interface; it shall be used to receive NXX code requests 
and to send NXX assignments in a relay between the NANPA and a service 
provider.  
Any or all of the following interfaces may also be necessary, depending on the 
particular service provider with which interaction is taking place and thus shall be 
made available: web, email, and facsimile.  For example, these interfaces would be 
used to receive block requests and block donations from the service provider, to 
34
send block assignments and requests for block recovery, to notify the service 
provider when it is to be a pooled NXX code holder or that a pooling related LERG 
update is completed.  
See Figure 2 for the thousands-block application process. 
PA
Database
& System
PAS
Parts 1A, 1B & 4
FAX
FTP
WWW
Part 3 (7 Calendar Day Response)
NPAC SMS
Part 1B
LERG-TRA
Assignee/SP
Parts 1A, 1B & 4
Parts 1A, 1B & 4
Assignment
Notification
Assignment
Notification
Request for Part 4 (5 Months)
User Authentication
Problem Notification
Update
SERVICE
PROVIDER
BIRRDS/
LERG
TELCORDIA
NANPA/
NAS
POOLING ADMINISTRATOR
NeuStarServer
Figure 2.  Thousands-Block Applications Process (Notational)
2.20.5 Interface with Regulatory Agencies
This interface shall be by web, email, voice, facsimile or U.S. mail.  For example, the 
interface may be used to provide a regulator aggregated forecast and utilization data 
for a pooled area.  
The contractor may also be called upon to testify in regulatory hearings.  In these 
cases the contractor shall ensure that their testimony is specific to the scope and 
requirements of this contract.  
2.20.6 Interface with the Media
The contractor shall prepare press releases and speak to the public in matters 
relating to thousands-block number pooling upon coordination with the FCC’s 
Contracting Officer Representative (COR) (as defined in Section H).  This shall 
include the creation and maintenance of a publicly available web site for this 
purpose.  This requires that the contractor retain personnel with public relations 
35
skills (e.g., the ability to explain complex number pooling issues to the media and 
the public consistent with industry positions on numbering issues). 
2.21  Reports
The contractor shall provide a monthly report to the FCC on thousands-block pooling 
assignments.  The report shall include for each rate center and NPA the number of 
assignments completed, the number of applications suspended in excess of seven 
(7) calendar days, the number of denials and the percentage of suspended 
applications.
The contractor shall provide semi-annual reports to the FCC and the NANPA on the 
status of each rate center inventory pool.  These reports shall coincide with the 
NRUF reporting dates and shall contain sufficient forecast and utilization information 
for the FCC and the NANPA.  
The contractor may also be called upon to produce aggregated NPA rate center pool 
status reports for various state and federal regulatory agencies.  
2.21.1 Annual Report
The contractor shall provide an Annual Report that shall be published annually to 
report on the status of pooling and pooling administration.  The annual report shall 
also be reviewed during the NANC annual performance review process.
The annual report shall contain at a minimum, but not be limited to:  
· Brief Description of the PA
· Highlights/significant milestones reached during previous year
· Identification of existing and potential pooling areas
· Aggregated total by pool of the service providers participating in the pooled 
area
· Forecast results, as well as a review of forecasts vs. actual block activation in 
the past
· System and performance metrics
· Status of required transferable property
· Industry issue identification/feedback
· Volume of reports produced aggregated by regulatory agency, NANC, 
NANPA, and service providers
· Additional informational offerings.
The Annual Report shall also be made available on the PA web site.
36
2.21.2 Pooling Matrices Report
The contractor shall be required to complete a pooling matrices report that contains
pooling information to be used in assessing the status of pooling by NPA/Rate 
Center.  An illustration of such a matrix is included in Appendix D.  This form and its 
content are subject to change and shall be completed by the contractor quarterly 
and forwarded to the FCC.  
2.21.3 Report and Document Distribution
Requested information and reports for external distribution shall be distributed within 
three (3) business days after receipt of the request.  The pooling administration 
system shall be capable of quick processing of raw data into report format to ensure 
timely disbursement.  
2.22  Performance Measurements (Also see Required Performance Metrics in 
5.0)
There are several ways that performance will be measured.  Each derives input from 
different sources and, therefore, no single item should be considered of greater or 
lesser value than the others.  
2.22.1  Assessment Period
On at least an annual basis, the FCC or its designee shall formally assess the 
performance of the contractor.  
2.22.2 Remedial Action
The contractor shall be required to implement any remedial action to correct any 
identified performance problems within 30 calendar days.  
2.22.3  Pooling Administration Quality Assurance (QA)
The performance monitoring process shall include, but not be limited to, internal, 
documented performance monitoring mechanisms to be developed and 
implemented by the contractor and made available to the industry through the FCC.  
The contractor’s QA plan, required following contract award, shall follow the format, 
where applicable, of Appendix B, Reference 21, IEEE Standard for Software Quality 
Assurance Plans.  
The contractor is required to have its representative(s) participate in a monthly call 
with the NANC or its designated oversight working group. The primary activities will 
37
be to review (1) quality assurance performance monitoring metrics and 
measurements, (2) complaints, (3) new developments impacting the availability of 
resources (4) FCC and/or NANC reports formats and contents and (5) corrective 
action plans to resolve deficiencies in performance and/or complaints. 
2.22.4 Contractor Performance Metrics 
The following metrics are important to the industry and also ensure parity between 
requirements for the contractor and similar functions performed by other contractors 
for number administration.  
2.22.4.1 Trouble Tickets/Outages
· Number Opened during the preceding month
· Number Closed during the preceding month
· Number under corrective action for over 30 calendar days.
· Number related to 
§ System performance 
§ Web site
§ Contractor ISP
· Total quantity of trouble tickets opened and closed for the month, with both the 
actual open time for each ticket and the average open time for all tickets. 
· Quantity of System Outages Notifications to all participants and regulatory 
agencies 
2.22.4.2 Change Order and PAS Notifications
· Changes initiated or modified Requiring Functional Impact Analysis 
o numbering resource plans administrative directives
o assignment guidelines
o other
· Written Notice of Changes Summarizing Potential Impact upon Service and Cost 
to be sent to Contracting Officer
2.22.4.3 Communications
· Phone Calls 
o Received 
o Not Returned by Next Business Day
· General inquiries or questions made outside the normal business hours Not 
Returned by Next Business Day
2.22.4.4 Forecasting data on a per-state basis
38
· Quantity of Rate Center Pools 
· Quantity of NXXs Applied for by SPs for Pool Replenishment
· Quantity of Rate Centers with Less than a 6-month supply 
2.22.4.5 Reporting
· Annual Report
· Quarterly Pooling matrices report
· Bi-annual Forecasted demand report. 
· Rate center inventory pool report.
· Pooling matrices report.  
· Monthly report to the FCC on thousands-block pooling assignments.  
· Monthly report to the FCC on system performance.  
· Monthly report to the FCC on staffing.  
· Monthly report to the FCC on the number of ad hoc reports generated.   
 
2.22.4.6 Application Processing on a monthly basis 
· Total applications processed 
· # of applications not processed in 7 calendar days  
· # of block assignments made 
· # of change requests to existing blocks 
· # of requests to cancel 
· # of block disconnect requests 
· # of block requests denied 
· # of blocks reclaimed 
· # of block reservation requests 
2.22.4.7 Reserved
2.22.4.8 Reserved
2.22.5 Events
Monitoring of contractor performance shall include performance of tasks in 
accordance with performance measurements established in this Requirements 
Document and any associated numbering resource assignment guidelines 
established by the INC and appropriate regulatory bodies.  
39
2.22.6 Additional Input
The annual assessment process shall not preclude telecommunications industry 
participants from identifying performance problems to the contractor and the FCC as 
they occur, and from seeking resolution of such performance problems in an 
expeditious manner.  
2.23 p-ANI Administration Requirements
The contractor shall serve as the Routing Number Authority (RNA) for pseudo 
Automatic Number Identification (p-ANI) codes used for routing emergency calls.  A 
p-ANI code is a number, consisting of the same number of digits as Automatic 
Number Identification (ANI) that is not a North American Numbering Plan telephone 
directory number and may be used in place of an ANI to convey special meaning to 
the selective router, public safety answering point, and other elements of the 911 
system.  The contractor must perform the p-ANI administration function in 
accordance with Appendix B, Reference 3, Industry Numbering Committee (INC) P-
ANI Administration Guidelines. 
Section 3
Pooling System Requirements
3.1 Description
The contractor shall use and maintain the current PAS, which will be transitioned to 
the contractor. This system shall include appropriate security measures for 
confidential data and accessibility for all service providers to their own information 
through an appropriately secured mechanism.  These security measures shall be 
described in the contractor’s Security Plan.  
The Pooling Administration system shall include:
· All thousand blocks contained in each industry inventory pool
· Block assignment and contamination status
· Whom Blocks are allocated to
· All rate centers per NPA
· Local and NPA specific dialing requirements
· Reclamation processing
· User Profiles and electronic signature verification
· Electronic application and document tracking. 
40
3.1.1 Confidential Treatment
Per Appendix B, Reference 2, Industry Numbering Committee (INC) Thousand 
Block (NXX-X) Pooling Guidelines, service provider specific data submitted to the 
contractor shall be treated as confidential.  
Any data published by the contractor shall be aggregated for presentation.  
3.1.2 Data Integrity
Furthermore, the contractor shall ensure that data/information shared publicly is 
factual in nature and findings and their underlying assumptions that are unexpected 
or significant are first reported to regulatory authorities and the NANC prior to public 
disclosure.  
3.1.3 Automated Data Filing Capabilities
The contractor shall support legacy data filing protocols between service providers 
and the PA.  
Except as noted, the pooling administration system shall offer a web interface and 
allow for automated data input for thousands-block/full NXX applications and other 
data needed for the processing of SP applications.  
This automated capability shall permit service providers to forward pooled 
application data for the following forms from Appendix B: Reference 2, INC TBPAG
· Attachment 1 Part 1A General Application Information
· Attachment 2 Part 1B NPAC Block Holder Data 
· Attachment 2a Part 2a Form 1 Thousands-Block (NXX-X) 
Assignment Request 
· Attachment 3 Part 3 Pooling Administrator’s Response/Confirmation
· Attachment 4 Part 4 Confirmation of NXX-X Block In Service
· Attachment 5 Part 5 Thousands-Block Reclamation Form
· Appendix 1 Thousands-Block Forecast Report 
· Appendix 2 Thousands-Block Donation Form
· Appendix 3 Thousands-Block Months to Exhaust and Utilization 
Certification Worksheet - TN Level
· Appendix 4 Thousands-Block Months to Exhaust Certification 
Worksheet - 1000 Block Level
· Appendix 5 User Profile Application
41
· Appendix 6 Example of Pre-Planning Checklist with Required Fields 
Identified for Demonstration of Facilities Readiness for an Initial Block Request
3.1.4 Automated Data Output Capabilities
The contractor shall accommodate automated data output via File Transfer Protocol 
(FTP) to service providers when transmitting data from Appendix B, Reference 2, 
Industry Numbering Committee (INC) Thousands-Block (NXX-X) Pooling 
Administration Guidelines, Attachment 3/Part 3, and other industry forms/data or 
reports.  
The contractor shall ensure that the system is capable of the following items:
· Denied requests will generate a Part 3 with all of the information pertaining to 
the specific request listed and the reason for the denial in the remarks field of 
the Part 3.
· OCN names are current as published in the LERG.  This will ensure that any 
changes due to merger/acquisition are reflected in the system automatically.  
service providers will not have to notify the PA of the changes.  
· All request information is viewable on the screen when the service provider is 
submitting a request (e.g. fields should allow for all characters to be viewed 
on the working screen).
· Give service providers the option of requesting different effective dates on 
various blocks of a multiple block submission.  This will help service providers 
when the Part 4s are due.
· For system generated emails on block submissions, include the PAS 
Tracking Number as part of the subject line.  This will help service providers 
identify which request the email pertains to.
3.1.5 Automated System Interface with NANPA
The contractor shall maintain an automated system interface between the pooling 
administration system and the NANPA administration system. 
The system interface shall, at a minimum, provide the following transactions:
· Non-pooled NXXs in pooling areas
· LRN/Code Holder
· NXX Voluntary Return/Abandoned Code Reassignment
42
· Part 1
· Part 3
· Part 4
· NANPA NRUF Forecast On File 
· Red Light Rule daily listing
· Service provider status and eligibility to be assigned resources
· LRN Forecast
· Full NXX applications (see Section 3.1.3, Reference 3 above),
· Receipt by the PA of the NANPA Part 3 for full NXX assignments in pooling,
· Service provider forecast information provided to NANPA via the NRUF 
process, 
3.1.6 Alternative Data Capabilities
The contractor shall support fax and email submissions related to thousands-block 
documentation (e.g., applications, forecast reports, etc.).  
3.2 Characteristics
The pooling administration system shall utilize electronic commerce type 
functionality.  
The system shall allow efficient user interaction and file transfer.  
3.3 System Reliability, Availability, Capacity, and Performance
The pooling administration system shall possess high reliability and allow for 
economical and efficient system expansion. 
The pooling system shall, at a minimum, adhere to the following availability and 
reliability requirements:  
· Available 24 hours, seven (7) days a week
· Availability shall meet a minimum requirement of 99.9% of scheduled up-time 
· Unscheduled maintenance downtime per calendar year interval shall be less 
than nine (9) hours
· The mean time to repair (MTTR) for all unscheduled downtime per any 12-
month interval shall be less than one (1) hour during core business hours and 
four (4) hours for non-core business hours 
· Scheduled maintenance downtime per 12-month interval shall be less than 24 
hours.
43
The pooling administration system design shall, at a minimum, provide:  
· Hardware fault tolerance that shall be transparent to users
· Duplexing of all major hardware components for continuous operation in the 
event of system hardware failure including loss of AC power up to eight (8) 
hours
· If the system becomes unavailable for normal operations due to any reason, 
including both scheduled and nonscheduled maintenance, service providers 
shall be notified of the system unavailability. Whenever possible, the 
notification shall be made via email. When this is not possible, the contractor 
shall notify users via website notification.
3.3.1 Reserved
3.4 System Location
The physical location of the pooling administration system facility shall be at the 
discretion of the contractor. The only limitation is that the facility shall be within the 
continental United States (CONUS).  
3.5 System Facility
3.5.1 Facility Characteristics
If the pooling administration system is located within a larger facility, space allocated 
to the system shall have the following characteristics:  
· Be dedicated entirely for pooling use
· Be a distinguishable area, separate from other parts of the facility by use of 
secure access points
· Be contiguous space so that all pooling administration system personnel are 
physically located within the same secure area
· Provide sufficient backup power to maintain operation through electrical 
outages of at least eight (8) hours.
3.5.2 Facility Planning
The facility specification shall include square footage and work space layouts for 
each pooling administration system staff member.  
3.5.3 Reserved
3.6 System Maintenance
44
The details of a proposed system maintenance schedule will be provided in the 
contractor’s Maintenance Plan.  
3.7 System Security
The contractor shall maintain and enforce physical security procedures that conform 
to the requirement to maintain confidential and proprietary information.  
The details will be provided in the contractor’s Security Plan.  
3.8 System Inspection
The FCC, with or without notice to the contractor, shall have the right to make visits 
to the pooling system to review safety/security requirements. 
If any safety and physical security procedures related to the pooling administration 
system do not comply with those specified, the contractor shall correct such 
noncompliance within 10 business days.  Failure to correct such deficiencies may 
result in termination of the contract.  
The contractor shall: (i) implement corrective measures, and (ii) give notice of such 
implementation to the FCC and the FCC may make one (1) or more follow-up visits 
to the affected data center, as necessary, to confirm the deficiency has been 
rectified.  The FCC’s rights under this paragraph shall not in any way limit the FCC’s 
to visit the data center for reasons other than a safety/security visit.
The system inspection shall include, but not be limited to, sub-contractor facilities, 
telecommuting employees of the contractor or subcontractor(s), contractor or 
subcontractor maintenance organizations or individuals on traveling status with 
access to the contractor’s pooling system.  
3.9 Web Site
The pooling administration system shall contain a web support design that simulates 
the design of the user profile, block application and forecast data reporting forms 
contained in Appendix B, Reference 2, Industry Numbering Committee (INC) 
Thousands-Block (NXX-X) Pooling Administration Guidelines.
The web site shall contain help information consisting of, at a minimum, the 
following: application-specific help information, pooling Frequently Asked Questions 
(FAQs), and an email link to the contractor as well as contact information (including 
telephone numbers) for all appropriate staff members.  
45
3.9.1 Availability and Access
The web site shall be available 24 hours per day, seven (7) days a week.  
The web site shall be able to support up to 600 simultaneous users with an average 
holding time of 0.5 hours.  
3.9.2 System Responsiveness
Rapid response shall be required when accessing the web site.  The contractor shall 
provide a system such that a 56 KBPS modem-equipped user will be able to view 
the complete home page in less than eight (8) seconds 95% of the time over any 12 
month period.
If a user is experiencing greater than 12 seconds to view the complete home page, 
the contractor system shall have the capability to sense this condition.  The 
contractor shall open a trouble ticket to investigate whether the problem is between 
the web site and the Internet Service Provider (ISP) or is in the pooling system.  If 
the user reports to the help desk a problem with accessing information on either the 
web site or the pooling system, and the contractor determines that a problem exists, 
the contractor shall open a trouble ticket to resolve the issue.  
3.9.3 Out-of-Service
The pooling administration system and the associated web site shall be operational 
99.9% of the time over any calendar year, excluding scheduled maintenance.  The 
contractor’s inability to deliver services to this level shall be deemed “out of service.”  
This figure excludes problems due to the customer’s network or equipment.  
If any “out of service” condition exists cumulatively for two (2) hours (or more) in any 
24-hour period, as evidenced by a user trouble report to the contractor, the 
contractor shall provide an out-of-service credit to the FCC in an amount equal to 
1/30th of the previous month’s charge for the month in which the outage occurred.  
All scheduled maintenance activities shall occur during non-core business hours, 
shall require prior approval of the FCC, and shall not exceed a four (4)-hour period 
unless approved by the FCC.  
The contractor system shall be capable of pinging its ISP(s) every five (5) seconds 
to confirm that the round-trip latency is less than or equal to 10 milliseconds.  If the 
latency is greater than 10 milliseconds, the connectivity between the web site and 
ISP(s) shall be considered out of service and a trouble ticket opened.  
46
3.9.4 Out-of-Service Notification
The contractor shall be the point of contact for system recovery.  The contractor 
shall be capable of distributing system status and outage reports to all registered 
users.  
All scheduled maintenance activities shall be approved in advance by the FCC prior 
to commencing the activity.  Once the FCC has approved the scheduled 
maintenance activity, the contractor shall provide notification to all registered users 
as to when the activity will begin and end, as well as the impact on the users.  
In addition, the contractor shall notify and report to all pool participants and 
regulatory agencies of an unscheduled system shutdown or failure.  
3.9.5 Updates
The web site shall contain current information.  The rate center inventory pool 
information should have no greater delay than 15 minutes between assignments and 
web site posting of updates.  
3.9.6 Web Site Help
The pooling administration web site shall contain help screens consisting of, at a 
minimum, the following: pooling FAQs, search capability, an email link, and contact 
telephone number(s) for the help desk, voice and facsimile.  
3.9.7 Support and Maintenance
The contractor shall maintain a web site with application-specific, help information 
that is constantly being improved, added to, and updated.  This knowledge base and 
other pooling FAQs content for each web application shall be updated as needed.
3.10 Reserved
3.11 System Report Administration
The pooling administration system shall be capable of generating and distributing 
reports to all requesting users who are entitled to receive reports.  The full set of 
reports will be described in the contractor’s Management Reporting Plan.  
3.11.1 System Reports
47
The system shall be capable of producing the following reports with flexible search 
functionality (i.e., independently by OCN, State, NPA or any combination of these 
data elements):
· Donated Block Report - detailing what a service provider has donated to pooling.
Details will include NPA-NXX-X, status, rate center, service provider name, 
contaminated? (Y or N), Active and Portable? (Y or N), AOCN, Switch CLLI and 
the effective date of the donation.
· Part 1A Report – detailing block submissions including state, PAS Tracking 
Number, type of request, OCN, submission date, Part 3 issue date, disposition, 
and the NPA-NXX-X assigned.
· Part 4 Submitted Report – detailing what blocks (NPA-NXX-X) have been put in 
service by an SP.  The details will include the PAS Tracking Number, the NPA-
NXX-X assigned, disposition, the effective date, the in service date, OCN and 
rate center.
· Assignments Needing Part 4 Report – detailing what blocks (NPA-NXX-X) have 
not been put into service by service provider.  The details will include the PAS 
Tracking Number, the NPA-NXX-X assigned, OCN, Part 4 due date, effective 
date.
3.11.2 System Report Validation
The system shall validate the accuracy of report contents prior to any distribution.  
3.11.3 Help Desk
The contractor shall maintain a help desk that is accessible during the PA’s regularly 
scheduled business hours.  
The Help Desk shall be available to assist users with the input and the interpretation 
of system-generated reports. 
The contractor shall: 
· Report problems with the web site, facsimile, voice mail or e-mail; for each 
problem the Help Desk will open a trouble ticket. 
· Report other problems that while not related to the web site, facsimile, voice 
mail or email, are likely to be visible and impacting to multiple users.
· Receive and transmit trouble tickets concerning communications problems with 
other vendors. 
48
· Require that each trouble ticket be time stamped with minute accuracy and 
stored for recall for up to two (2) years.
· Require that once a trouble ticket is closed, the originator of the trouble ticket 
shall be notified of disposition of the problem.
· Summarize the quantity and type of trouble tickets opened and closed during 
the year in the annual report.
· Require the help desk to assist customers to fill out applications or reports or to 
gain access to other authorized FCC or industry information.
· Require that if out-of-service conditions exists, the time stamped on the trouble 
ticket shall be used as the time for the start of the out-of-service period; when 
the out-of-service condition has been cleared and the originator of the trouble 
ticket notified, the time stamped on the last update of the trouble ticket shall be 
used as the end of the out-of-service period.
· The contractor shall provide and maintain a help desk with a toll free phone 
number to assist with interpretation of any system problem or inquiries related to 
National Pooling.
· The contractor shall provide and maintain a help desk with a separate toll free 
phone number to assist with interpretation of any system problem or inquiries 
related to p-ANI.
3.11.4 Report Distribution
Reports generated by the pooling administration system shall be capable of being 
distributed and updated in a timely manner using an electronic mechanism so that 
distribution and any necessary notifications are automatic.  
3.12 System Testing
The pooling administration system shall participate in any pooling test deemed 
appropriate by the FCC to ensure the efficacy of the national pooling guidelines, any 
standards that are referenced or cited in any of the documents in Section 1.2 of this 
document or any standards that are offered in contractor’s proposal.  For example: 
Internet Engineering Task Force (IETF) interface standards for IP, or numbering 
plan standards, like ITU E.164.  
The testing will ensure the efficacy of the uniform pooling resource guidelines, 
interfaces and standards.  The contractor shall develop and implement a System 
Acceptance Plan following the format, where applicable, of Appendix B, Reference 
23, IEEE Standard for Software Test Documentation.  
3.12.1 System Test Plan
49
Prior to  implementation of a modification to the current pooling administration 
system or a full pooling administration system implementation, the contractor shall 
provide testing of the pooling administration system in anticipation of the system 
acceptance test.  This testing shall contain a timeline and specific pooling 
administration system elements to be tested.  
3.12.2 System Test Results
Upon completion of the pooling administration system acceptance test, the 
contractor shall inform the FCC of the results.
3.13 System Acceptance
Final approval of the system shall be dependent on successful execution of the 
System Acceptance Plan, which shall include a System Test Plan.  The System 
Acceptance Plan shall be successfully completed within 90 calendar days of the 
contract award.  
3.14 System Processing Acknowledgement
The pooling administration system shall be capable of generating an 
acknowledgement to the submitter with a 56 KBPS modem within eight (8) seconds 
95% of the time over any 12 month period when a block application or other 
document and report has been submitted.  
3.15 User Logon System
Upon receipt of an approved request form, the system shall be able to support 
access to certain pooling administration system data with a unique logon ID and 
password.  
3.15.1 Logon System Access
Formal access shall be initiated upon receipt of a completed logon ID request form 
having the proper signature approvals from the requesting organization.  
3.15.2 Logon System Approval
After access approval, the contractor shall assign a unique logon ID and password 
to the user.  
3.15.3 Logon System Security Level
50
The user’s security requirement sets the correct level of record access and system 
capabilities.  For forms and reports requiring an applicant signature, a valid logon ID 
and password shall be considered tantamount to an applicant signature.  (For 
facsimile submissions, actual signed documents must be submitted in parallel by 
U.S. mail.)  
3.15.4 Reserved
3.15.5 Logon System Problems
Users experiencing problems in obtaining a logon ID shall contact the contractor for 
resolution.  The contractor shall attempt to resolve all problems in real time.  
3.15.6 User Access Permission Classes
The contractor, using the pooling administration system, shall be responsible for 
assigning new users the appropriate security permission class.  The contractor shall 
exercise appropriate control over access to all records, and ensure that users are 
only allowed access to the appropriate data.  
A system that establishes various classes of user access shall be developed by the 
contractor.  
3.15.7 User Functionality
An authorized user shall be able to invoke, at a minimum, the following functionality 
to query the data contained in and data submitted to the pooling administration 
system:  
· Rate center pool inventory data - Users shall be able to query data by rate 
center only, NPA only, or both rate center and NPA.  These data queries shall 
allow the user to specify assigned blocks only, available blocks only, or both 
assigned and available blocks.
· Block applications - Forms shall be available.  Users shall be permitted to 
save partially completed applications, and withdraw pending applications, 
which will be accessible during future system log-ins.  
· Block reservations - Users shall be able to reserve block(s) pending 
regulatory approval of “safety valve” requests, and withdraw pending 
applications.
· Previously filed application materials pertaining to the specific user - Users 
shall have the ability to modify a pending request, provided the PA has not 
starting processing the request.
51
· System email responses to application requests shall clearly identify the 
response, and not contain generic “subject lines”. 
· User profiles shall provide the ability for users to specify “carbon copies” on 
system responses to multiple users.
· Users shall be able to retrieve data on a read only basis, but shall have the 
ability to download query report data to Excel spreadsheets.  
3.15.8 Reserved
3.16 Unauthorized System Access
In the event contractor becomes aware of an unauthorized access to the pooling 
administration system, or user data, the contractor shall immediately: (i) notify the 
FCC and the applicable user(s) by email; (ii) investigate the unauthorized access; 
and (iii) subject to reasonable access, security, and confidentiality requirements, 
provide the FCC, users, and their respective designees with reasonable access to 
all resources and information in the contractor’s possession as may be necessary to 
investigate the unauthorized access.  The FCC shall have the right to conduct and 
control any investigation relating to unauthorized access as it determines is 
appropriate.  
3.16.1 Data Security
Complete information describing the security mechanisms used to prevent 
unauthorized access to its computers and telecommunications equipment, including 
internal policies, procedures, training, hardware and software, etc., will be furnished 
in the contractor’s Security Plan.  
3.17 System Disaster Recovery
A disaster recovery process shall be developed to restore the pooling administration 
system within two (2) business days.  
A detailed Disaster/Continuity of Operations Plan, following the format, where 
applicable, of Appendix B, Reference 22, NFPA 1600 Standard on 
Disaster/Emergency Management and Business Continuity Programs, is required 
following contract award.  
3.17.1 Recovery Costs
In the event of a disaster, the contractor shall cover all costs associated with 
rebuilding or recovering the applications systems, records, and related information 
that existed prior to the disaster.  
52
3.17.2 System Backup
Backup files shall be stored off site and generated at least daily.  Files shall be 
retained on line for two (2) years and archived for five (5) years.  
3.17.3 System Outage Notification
The contractor shall notify all participants and regulatory agencies of all system 
outages and system changes that directly affect the support of pooling 
administration functions.  
3.18 Non-Performance
Within 90 days of contract award, the contractor shall ensure that the pooling system 
will be compliant with the System Implementation Plan and System Documentation 
Plan, industry guidelines, and contractor duties enumerated herein, and other 
industry/regulatory documents. 
3.18.1 Final Acceptance
Final acceptance of the system shall be dependent on successful execution of the 
System Acceptance Plan.  
3.18.2 Reserved
3.18.3 Reserved
3.19 System Documentation
The Contractor shall, within 90 calendar days of the contract award, according to the 
System Documentation Plan, provide the FCC Contracting Officer for approval with 
copies of:  
User documentation consistent with Appendix B, Reference 20, IEEE Standard for 
Software User Documentation.
System documentation in sufficient detail to guide normal operations, system and 
application software upgrades, application modifications, and host ports.  
3.20 Pooling System and Equipment Transfer to Successor
53
The contractor shall transfer in the case of termination or at the expiration of the 
term of administration to the FCC or designee, all hardware and software used in 
conjunction with the pooling administration system.  This means that everything 
transfers, including all items attached to the pooling administration system.
Any other equipment or contracts associated with the pooling administration day-to-
day operation shall transfer.  This shall include but is not limited to:  
· The system and all its supporting documentation
· All software and intellectual property
· All hardware
· Computers and related equipment
· Other peripheral devices
· All pooling records both current and stored.  
· Also see Transition Plan.
3.20.1 Transfer Efficiency
The transfer of such physical property shall be performed in a manner that shall 
ensure an efficient and orderly transition of the pooling administration system and 
associated equipment to a successor's environment in a fully operational state.  
3.20.2 Reserved
3.20.3 Technical Support
After the period provided in the services continuity clause in section H (52.237-3), if 
requested, the contractor shall provide at least 15 working days, but up to 45 
working days over a six (6)-month period, of technical support to ensure a smooth 
transition of the system.  
3.20.4 Documentation
The contractor shall provide the FCC with copies of all documentation specified in 
the System Documentation Plan.  
3.20.5 Transition Plan
Prior to contract termination and at the written request of the Contracting Officer, the 
contractor shall provide a detailed plan for an efficient and orderly transition.  This 
transition plan shall follow the format, as applicable, of Appendix B, Reference 24, 
Software Transition Plan (STrP).  The Transition Plan shall be submitted within 90 
days of receipt of request. The Transition plan is a 90-day plan with a possible 90-
day extension.  It is due no later than 180 days prior to the contract end.
54
3.20.6 Reserved
3.20.7 System and Equipment Ownership
The system and equipment shall transfer with lien-free title to the FCC or the FCC's 
designee, without charge.  
3.21 System and Equipment Inventory
Inventory data (hardware model, serial numbers and descriptions) on equipment 
shall be reported as part of the contractor’s annual reporting requirements, as well 
as any upgrades or replacements, including the license numbers of any Commercial 
Off-the-Shelf (COTS) software.  
3.22 Reserved
Section 4
Contract Data Requirements List (CDRL) (Deliverables) - All CDRLs shall be 
approved by the FCC.  
4.1 Reserved 
4.2 Security Plan
The contractor shall furnish a Security Plan within 45 calendar days of contract 
award per Sections 3.1, 3.7, and 3.16.1.  
4.3 System Documentation Plan
The contractor shall furnish a System Documentation Plan within 60 calendar 
days of contract award per Section 3.19.  
4.4 Disaster/Continuity of Operations Plan
The contractor shall furnish a Disaster/Continuity of Operations Plan within 60 
calendar days of contract award per Section 3.17.  
4.5 Statistical Forecasting Plan
The contractor shall furnish a Forecasting Plan within 60 calendar days of 
contract award per Section 2.17.3.  
 
55
4.6 Management Reporting Plan
The contractor shall furnish a Management Reporting Plan within 60 calendar 
days of contract award.  Reports are required annually, semi-annually, quarterly, 
and monthly per Section 3.11.  There are also “by request” reporting 
requirements per Section 2.21.2.
4.6.1 Annual
The contractor shall provide an Annual Report per Section 2.21.1.  
4.6.2 Semi-Annual
4.6.2.1 Forecasted Demand
The contractor shall provide a forecasted demand report per Section 2.17.1.  
4.6.2.2 Rate Center Inventory Pool Status
The contractor shall provide a rate center inventory pool report per Section 
2.16.5.  
4.6.3 Quarterly
4.6.3.1 Pooling Matrices
The contractor shall provide a pooling matrices report per Section 2.21.2.  
4.6.4 Monthly
4.6.4.1 Thousands-Block Pooling
The contractor shall provide a monthly report to the FCC on thousands-block 
pooling assignments per Section 2.21.  
4.6.4.2 System Performance
The contractor shall provide a monthly report to the FCC on system performance 
per Section 2.22.  
4.6.4.3 Staffing
The contractor shall provide a monthly report to the FCC on staffing per Section 
2.3.  
4.6.5 By Request
 
56
The contractor shall, from time to time, be requested to provide ad hoc reports 
per Section 2.21.3.  
4.7 System Acceptance Plan
The contractor shall furnish a System Acceptance Plan within 30 calendar days 
of contract award per Section 3.12.  
4.8 QA Plan
The contractor shall furnish a QA Plan within 120 calendar days of contract 
award per Section 2.22.3.  
4.9 Transition Plan
The contractor shall furnish a Transition Plan within 180 calendar days of 
contract termination per Section 3.20.5.  The transition plan is a 90-day plan with 
a possible 90-day extension. It is due no later than 180 days prior to the contract 
end.
4.10 Maintenance Plan
The contractor shall furnish a Maintenance Plan within 150 calendar days of 
contract award per Section 3.6.
5.0  REQUIRED PERFORMANCE METRICS 
REQUIRED PERFORMANCE METRICS (RPM) TABLE
Required 
Service
Performance
Standards
Acceptable 
Quality
Levels
Method 
Of
Surveillance
Incentive
(Negative)
(Impact on 
Contractor 
Payments)
Process Applications
(See PWS
2.20.4,2.22.4.6)
Answer calls 
(See PWS
2.22.4.3)
Submission of 
Deliverables
(See PWS
4.2, 4.3, 4.4, 4.5, 4.6, 
4.6.1, 4.6.2.1, 
4.6.2.2, 4.6.3.1, 4.7, 
4.8, 4.9, 4.10)
Submission of 
Deliverables
(See PWS
4.6.4.1, 4.6.4.2,
Applications processed 
within 7 calendar days
Calls answered within 1 
business day
Deliverables submitted no 
later than the due dates
Deliverables submitted no 
later than the due dates
99%
100%
100%
100%
Reports, customer, 
regulatory &/or industry 
complaints, inspections, 
and/or evaluations
Industry evaluations and 
reports 
Web site review; files review; 
customer, regulatory &/or 
industry complaints, 
inspections, and/or 
evaluations 
Web site review; files review; 
customer, regulatory &/or 
industry complaints, 
inspections, and/or 
Invoice deduction of 
$500 for each 
application  
processed late
Invoice deduction of 
$500 for each  
unanswered call
Invoice deduction of 
$1,000 per day for 
each late report  
Invoice deduction of 
$500 per day for 
each late report  
 
57
4.6.4.3, 4.6.5, )
PAS Availability
(See PWS 3.3)
Maintenance
(See PWS 3.3)
Maintenance
(See PWS 3.3)
Pooling Administration 
System is available 
Unscheduled maintenance 
of the PAS is less than 9 
hours in any 12 month 
period
Scheduled maintenance of 
the PAS is less than 24 
hours in any 12 month 
period
99.9%
100%
100%
evaluations 
Web site review, files review, 
complaints (customer, 
regulatory & industry), 
inspections
Web site review, files review, 
complaints (customer, 
regulatory & industry), 
inspections
Web site review, files review, 
complaints (customer, 
regulatory & industry), 
inspections
Invoice deduction of 
$1,000 per day of  
system unavailability  
Invoice deduction of 
1% of  price of 
contract  
Invoice deduction of 
1% of  price of 
contract  
 
58
Appendix A
Acronyms, Abbreviations and Definitions
Allocation Date The allocation date is the date established by the pooling 
administrator (PA) when the PA officially makes the block 
assignment to a service provider (SP).
AOCN Administrative Operating Company Number
Auditor An auditor is a FCC-designated auditor.
ATIS Alliance for Telecommunications Industry Solutions
Billing The cost of pooling administration is a shared cost that is billed to 
all pooling and non-pooling service providers pursuant to the FCC’s 
Number Optimization Order, FCC 00-104, dated March 31, 2000.
BIRRDS Business Integrated Rating and Routing Database System
Block A range of 1000 TNs within the NPA-NXX, beginning with a station 
of n000, and ending with n999, where n is a value between 0 and 
9.
Block Donation 
Date
The deadline for SPs to donate their thousands-block(s) (Appendix 
B, Reference 1, FCC 00-014.)
Block Holder The recipient service provider of a 1K Block from the code holder.  
Also defined as the NPA-NXX-X holder in the LERG.
CFR Code of Federal Regulations
CO Central Office
CO Codes The sub-NPA code in a TN, i.e., digits D-E-F of a 10-digit NANP 
Area address.  Central office codes are in the form "NXX", where N 
is a number from 2 to 9 and X is a number from 0 to 9.  Central 
office codes may also be referred to as "NXX codes" (Appendix B, 
Reference 25, 47 C.F.R. § 52.7(c)).
CONUS Continental United States
COTS Commercial Off–The-Shelf
CDRL Contract Data Requirements List
Code Holder The code holder is the Code Holder of the NPA-NXX.
Effective Date The date that is considered to be the “ownership switchover” date 
for the 1K Block from the code holder (NPA-NXX owning SP) to the 
block holder (NPA-NXX-X owning SP).  This is the date published 
in the LERG, and is also used by the pooling administrator and the 
NPAC.
FAQ Frequently Asked Question
FCC Federal Communications Commission
FTP File Transfer Protocol
IETF Internet Engineering Task Force
INC The Industry Numbering Committee (INC) is an industry forum 
operating under the auspices of the Alliance for 
Telecommunications Industry Solutions (ATIS).  Their mission is to 
 
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provide an open forum to address and resolve industry-wide issues 
associated with the planning, administration, allocation, assignment 
and use of numbering resources and related dialing considerations 
for public telecommunications within the NANP area.
ISP Internet Service Provider
ITU International Telecommunications Union
Knowledge base A database provided on a support web site programmed with 
application-specific, self-help information that is constantly being 
improved, added-to, and updated based on information gathered 
from use of the application.
LERG Telcordia?? LERG?? Routing Guide
LLC Limited Liability Corporation
LNP Local Number Portability
MSA Metropolitan Statistical Area
MTE Months to Exhaust
MTTR Mean Time To Repair
NANC The North America Numbering Council (NANC) is a Federal 
Advisory Committee established pursuant to the United States 
Federal Advisory Committee Act, 5 U.S.C., App. 2 (1988) (FACA).  
The NANC was established to advise the FCC and other NANP 
member countries on issues related to NANP administration, and to 
advise the Commission on local number portability administration 
issues in the United States.
NANP North American Numbering Plan (NANP) is the basic numbering 
scheme for the public switched telecommunications networks in the 
following 19 countries (formerly known as World Zone 1): Anguilla, 
Antigua & Barbuda, Bahamas, Barbados, Bermuda, British Virgin 
Islands, Canada, Cayman Islands, Dominica, Dominican Republic, 
Grenada, Jamaica, Montserrat, St. Kitts & Nevis, St. Lucia, St. 
Vincent & the Grenadines, Trinidad & Tobago, Turks & Caicos 
Islands, and the United States (and it’s territories).  The format of 
the NANP is in compliance with ITU standards as detailed in 
Recommendation E.164.
NANPA North American Numbering Plan Administration
NPA Number Plan Area
NPAC Number Portability Administration Center
NPA-NXX-X A range of 1000 pooled TNs within the NPA-NXX, beginning with a 
station of n000, and ending with n999, where n is a value between 
0 and 9.
NXX Network Numbering Exchange
NRUF Numbering Resource Utilization and Forecast
OCN Operating Company Number
PA Pooling Administrator
p-ANI Pseudo Automatic Number Identification
PAS Pooling Administration System
PUC Public Utility Commission
 
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PWS Performance Work Statement (which is also the Technical 
Requirements Document)
QA Quality Assurance
Rate Center Denotes the smallest geographic area used to distinguish rate 
boundaries.
Reassignment The process of reestablishing the assignment of a thousands-
block, which was previously assigned to another SP or to a new 
SP.
RFP Request for Proposal
SMS Service Management System
Subcontractor An organization providing services to the contractor.
Term of 
Administration
The contractor’s contract shall be for a term of five (5) years.
TNs Telephone Numbers
TRA Traffic Routing Administration, Telcordia
 
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Appendix B
Reference Documentation, Technical Standards and Regulatory Orders
1. Federal Communications Commission: In the Matter of Number Resource 
Optimization, Report and Order and Further Notice of Proposed Rule Making, CC 
Docket 99-200, FCC 00-104 (March 31, 2000).  Available at: 
http://www.fcc.gov/searchtools.html. 
2. Industry Numbering Committee (INC): Thousand Block (NXX-X) Pooling 
Administration Guidelines, ATIS-0300066 (use latest version at time of RFP), by 
the Alliance for Telecommunications Industry Solutions (ATIS) INC.  Available at: 
http://www.atis.org/inc/incguides.asp.
3. Industry Numbering Committee (INC): P-ANI Administration Guidelines, ATIS-
0300089, (September 30, 2011 or use latest version at time of RFP), by the 
Alliance for Telecommunications Industry Solutions (ATIS) INC.  Available at: 
http://www.atis.org/inc/incguides.asp.
4. Committee T1: Thousand Block Number Pooling Using Number Portability, 
Technical Requirements No. 4, July 1999. Prepared by T1S1.6 Working Group 
on Number Portability a working group of Committee T1- Telecommunications, 
sponsored by ATIS. http://www.atis.org/docstore/product.aspx?id=8437
5. Reserved.
6. Industry Numbering Committee (INC): North American Numbering Plan 
Numbering Resource Utilization/Forecast Reporting (NRUF) Guidelines, ATIS-
0300068,
(September 30, 2011 or use latest version at time of RFP), by Alliance for 
Telecommunications Industry Solutions (ATIS) INC. Available at: 
http://www.atis.org/inc/incguides.asp.
7. Industry Numbering Committee (INC): Central Office Code (NXX) Assignment 
Guidelines, ATIS-0300051 (January 20, 2012 or use latest version at time of 
RFP) by the Alliance for Telecommunications Industry Solutions (ATIS) INC . 
Available at: http://www.atis.org/inc/incguides.asp.
8. Reserved
9. Reserved
 
62
10. Responses to Questions in the Numbering Resource Optimization 
Proceeding, CC Docket 99-200, DA 00-1549 (rel. July 11, 2000).  Available at: 
http://www.fcc.gov/ccb/Nanc/nancpubn.html.
11. Letter Agreement 1, FCC and Neustar, Inc. (Dated July 18, 2000)
12. Reserved. 
13. Administration of the North American Numbering Plan, Third Report and 
Order, CC Docket 92-237 (re. Oct. 9, 1997).  Available at: 
http://www.fcc.gov/searchtools.html.
14. Reserved
15. Number Portability Switching Systems (Report No.T1.TRQ.02-1999). 
http://www.atis.org/docstore/product.aspx?id=8436
16. FCC Cyber Security Program.
17. North American Numbering Council, Functional Requirements Specifications: 
Number Portability Administration Center (NPAC), Service Management System 
(SMS), Version 3.4 May 31, 2011. Available at: https://www.npac.com/the-
npac/software-releases
18. Reserved.
19. Reserved.
20. IEEE Standards Board, IEEE Standard for Software User Documentation, 
February 4, 2002.  Available at: http://standards.ieee.org/catalog/olis/index.html.
21. IEEE-SA Standards Board, IEEE Standard for Software Quality Assurance 
Plans, IEEE Std 730-2002, April 18, 2003.  Available at: 
http://standards.ieee.org/catalog/olis/index.html.
22. National Fire Protection Association, NFPA 1600 Standard on 
Disaster/Emergency Management and Business Continuity Programs, 2004 
Edition.  Available at: http://www.nfpa.org/.
23. IEEE-SA Standards Board, IEEE Standard for Software Test Documentation,
IEEE Std 829-1998, February 4, 2002.  Available at: 
http://standards.ieee.org/catalog/olis/index.html.
24. Space and Naval Warfare Systems Command (SPAWAR), Software 
Transition Plan (STrP), DID- IPSC-81429A, 10 Jan 2000.  Available at: 
http://www.ihsengineering.com/.
25. Code of Federal Regulations, Title 47, Volume 3, Parts 40-69, 
Telecommunications.  Available at: http://www.access.gpo.gov/nara/cfr/cfr-table-
search.html.
26. NPAC, Methods and Procedures for National Number Pooling, Prepared for 
Neustar, Inc. NPAC, Version 3.4, May 31, 2011. Available at: 
 
63
http://www.npac.com (access and sign in to the NPAC secured website 
required).
27. Federal Communications Commission, In the Matter of Numbering Resource 
Optimization, Petition for Declaratory Ruling and Request For Expedited Action 
on the July 15, 1997 Order of the Pennsylvania Public Utility Commission 
Regarding Area Codes 412, 610, 215, and 717, Second Report and Order, Order 
on Reconsideration in CC Docket No. 96-98 and CC Docket No. 99-200, and 
Second Further Notice of Proposed Rulemaking, CC 
Docket No. 99-200, FCC 00-429 (Adopted December 7, 2000). Available at: 
http://www.fcc.gov/searchtools.html.  
 
64
Appendix C
Interface Contact Information
NANPA
John Manning
c/o Neustar, Inc.
21575 Ridgetop Circle
Sterling, VA 20166 
Phone: 571-434-5770
Fax:  571-434-5502
NPAC
Neustar, Inc.
21575 Ridgetop Circle
Sterling, VA 20166
Phone: 571-434-5434
Fax:  571-434-5401
BIRRDS/LERG 
Telcordia Routing Administration (TRA)
One Telcordia Drive
Room 4A738
Piscataway, NJ 08854-41567 
Phone: 732-699-6700 
Contact information is included to facilitate responses to this document by all 
potential contractors and is not intended to endorse the particular organizations 
listed.  
 
65
Appendix D
Example Pooling Summary Report
Example: Pooling Summary Report
State: ____________
Date of Report
Type of Information NPA: RATE CENTER
A. NPA Profile
Block(s) Available for 
Assignment
Block(s) Assigned
Average blocks assigned per 
month in last 6 months
Jeopardy condition?
Current rationing?
NPA relief plan?
Quantity of currently LNP 
capable carriers 
(participating)
Quantity of carriers with future 
LNP capability (non-
participating)
Quantity of carriers with no 
LNP mandated (non-
participating)
Quantity of rate centers
Top 100 MSA?
Other distinguishing 
characteristics?
Projected Demand for Blocks