NH lawmakers hope to save the 603: Area code nears its limit

CONCORD — By the end of 2027, New Hampshire's iconic 603 area code may reach its limit.

There are only so many seven-number combinations that can be put after the number 603, the state’s phone area code. In 2023, the North American Numbering Plan Administrator warned it hit the maximum as soon as 2027. That could mean New Hampshire will have to add a second area code in the near future.

To delay it, state lawmakers have introduced the aptly titled Senate Bill 603, which directs the New Hampshire Department of Energy and the Public Utilities Commission to do all it legally can to adopt telephone conservation measures and maximize the number of available numbers.

“We lost the Old Man of the Mountain nearly 21 years ago. Our first-in-the-nation primary is under attack, even Daniel Webster went to Massachusetts to run for Senate. But we still have three numbers that are unique to the Granite State: 603,” said Grant Bosse, the deputy chief of staff for the New Hampshire Senate, at a public hearing in front of the House Science, Technology, and Energy Committee in April. He introduced the bill on behalf of the prime sponsor, Senate President Jeb Bradley, R-Wolfeboro.

“603 is more than an area code. It's an identity. We have songs and bumper stickers, and political slogans, and craft beers and T-shirts,” said Bosse. “603 is New Hampshire, and New Hampshire is 603.”

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How could New Hampshire extend life of 603?

Some ways to preserve the code are reclaiming numbers that are no longer in use and requiring providers to return assigned blocks of numbers not being used. The bill comes with a one-time cost of $100,000 to $300,000 to hire a consultant to identify the measures New Hampshire could take.

Bradley introduced the bill in part at the request of New Hampshire Gov. Chris Sununu, who issued an executive order last year that established the “Don’t Overload the Code” initiative. To extend the life of the code, it directed the Department of Energy and the Bureau of Economic Affairs to reclaim unused telephone numbers.

The state is following the example of Maine, which also acted to preserve its code when told 207 would hit its limit by 2025. By limiting robocalls and changing forecasting and block requesting practices, the state was able to extend the life of the code until 2032, according to reporting by WMTW.

New Hampshire and Maine are two of just 11 states left with a single area code. However, according to Maine’s Public Utilities Commission, the whole country may run out of area codes by 2051.

Therefore, the efforts in New Hampshire won’t prevent the need for a second area code someday, but it would move the date down the line, said Bosse. The New Hampshire Department of Energy testified it's optimistic it can extend the 603, perhaps even until the federal government determines how to number across the country when they run out.

But that inevitability is part of the reason Rep. Thomas Cormen, D-Lebanon, wrote the bill should be voted inexpedient to legislate in the committee’s minority report.

“Whether or not we attempt to extend the life of the 603 area code, we will run out of phone numbers in the 603 area code sometime in the next few years,” wrote Cormen. “The bottom line is that this bill spends money just to kick the can down the road.”

The bill passed the Senate in March by a voice vote. The House Science, Technology and Energy Committee narrowly recommended it to pass by a vote of 10-9, and it was scheduled to go to the House for a full vote Thursday.

This article originally appeared on Portsmouth Herald: Can New Hampshire lawmakers save the 603 as state's lone area code?