Federal Communications Commission DA 17-852
Before the
Federal Communications Commission
Washington, D.C. 20554
In the Matter of
Telephone Number Portability
Numbering Resource Optimization
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CC Docket No. 95-116
CC Docket No. 99-200
ORDER
Adopted:  September 6, 2017 Released:  September 6, 2017
By the Chief, Wireline Competition Bureau:
1. Hurricane Irma is moving through the Caribbean, striking the U.S. Virgin Islands and Puerto 
Rico, and is predicted to strike the Florida Keys and other southern parts of the United States.
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  Hurricane 
Irma is expected to cause significant damage in the areas within its path, including storm surge, wind 
damage, and flooding, and will likely result in significant property damage and personal injury.  It will also 
likely cause substantial service disruptions and outages in telephone service in all areas it affects. For 
these reasons, on our own motion, we are granting a temporary waiver of the Commission’s number
assignment rules to allow service providers in the U.S. Virgin Islands, Puerto Rico, the State of Florida,
and any other states declared states of emergency as a result of Hurricane Irma,
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and the numbering 
administrators that support them, to deviate from section 52.15(f)(ii) of the Commission’s rules regarding 
number assignments.   
2. Section 1.3 of our rules authorizes the Commission to suspend, revoke, amend, or waive a 
Commission rule for good cause shown.
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  In order to promote the maintenance and rebuilding of 
communities that may be affected by Hurricane Irma and to facilitate continued access to 
telecommunications services for disaster victims, it is in the public interest to temporarily waive section 
52.15(f)(ii) of the Commission’s rules.  That rule requires service providers to age numbers for no more 
than 90 days before making the numbers available for reassignment.  Waiver of section 52.15(f)(ii) will 
allow carriers in the affected areas, upon customers’ request, to disconnect temporarily customers’
telephone service to avoid billing issues, and then reinstate the same numbers when service is reconnected 
in those areas. This waiver applies to all companies that provide service in the U.S. Virgin Islands, Puerto 
                                                     
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NOAA, National Hurricane Center, Hurricane Irma, 
http://www.nhc.noaa.gov/refresh/graphics_at1+shtml/175630.shtml?radii#contents (last visited Sept. 6, 2017).
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FEMA, President Donald J. Trump Signs Emergency Declaration for Puerto Rico (Sept. 5, 2017), 
https://www.fema.gov/news-release/2017/09/05/president-donald-j-trump-signs-emergency-declaration-puerto-rico; 
FEMA, President Donald J. Trump Signs Emergency Declaration for Florida (Sept. 5, 2017), 
https://www.fema.gov/news-release/2017/09/05/president-donald-j-trump-signs-emergency-declaration-florida; 
FEMA, President Donald J. Trump Signs Emergency Declaration for U.S. Virgin Islands (Sept. 5, 2017), 
https://www.fema.gov/news-release/2017/09/05/president-donald-j-trump-signs-emergency-declaration-us-virgin-
islands.
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47 CFR § 1.3.  This rule provides that “[a]ny provision of the rules may be waived by the Commission on its own 
motion or on petition if good cause therefore is shown.”  Id.
Federal Communications Commission DA 17-852
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Rico, the State of Florida, and any other states declared states of emergency as a result of Hurricane Irma. 
This waiver is in effect immediately and for a nine-month period, expiring on June 4, 2018.  If service 
providers are unable to resume service on a normal basis after this period, they may request additional 
relief from the Wireline Competition Bureau.  
3. Also, because of substantial damage to telecommunications systems we expect to be caused by 
Hurricane Irma to areas within its path, we recognize that customers in the affected rate centers may desire 
to port numbers to locations outside those rate centers.  Therefore, during this period of service 
interruption, we encourage service providers to port telephone numbers geographically outside a rate 
center to the extent it is technically feasible.  We also encourage all providers in the areas affected by 
Hurricane Irma, as well as those continuing to be impacted by Hurricane Harvey, to waive call forwarding, 
message center, and voicemail service charges for affected customers, to the extent lawfully permitted, 
until the customers’ service is restored.   
4. Accordingly, IT IS ORDERED, pursuant to sections 4(i), 251(b)(2), and 251(e) of the 
Communications Act of 1934, as amended, 47 U.S.C. §§ 154(i), 251(b)(2) and 251(e), and sections 0.291 
and 1.3 of the Commission’s rules, 47 CFR §§ 0.291, 1.3, that section 52.15(f)(ii), 47 C.F.R. § 52.15(f)(ii), 
is waived to the extent herein described herein. 
FEDERAL COMMUNICATIONS COMMISSION
Kris A. Monteith
Chief
Wireline Competition Bureau