New phone area code to be added to Northern California

Hamza Fahmy
·2 min read

SAN FRANCISCO (KRON) — Due to popularity and scarcity, a new area code will be added to California’s 530 region.

Starting January 31, 2025, customers in the 530 area code region may be assigned a number with an 837 area code when they request a new service or an additional line.

The price of a call and current phone numbers, including current area codes, will not change, CPUC said.

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With new telephone numbers in the 530 area code region in high demand, the CPUC approved the implementation of an area code overlay in June 2023. This overlay adds a second area code to the same geographic region served by the existing 530 area code.

The CPUC said customers receiving an 837 area code will be required to dial 1 + the area code and phone number for all local calls, just as customers with telephone numbers from the 530 area code do today.

Until 2025, the CPUC said customers can prepare in the following ways:

  • Customers should continue to identify their telephone number as a 10-digit number (3-digit area code + 7-digit telephone number), and include the area code when giving the number to friends, family, business associates, and others.

  • Customers should ensure their websites, personal and business stationery, and printed checks, advertising materials, contact information, and personal or pet ID tags include the area code.

Most 530 customers reside in Northern California, covering all or portions of Alpine, Butte, Colusa, El Dorado, Glenn, Humboldt, Lassen, Modoc, Mono, Nevada, Placer, Plumas, Shasta, Sierra, Siskiyou, Solano, Sutter, Tehama, Trinity, Yolo and Yuba counties. It serves communities such as Chico, Davis, El Dorado Hills, Oroville, Paradise, Placerville, Red Bluff, Redding, South Lake Tahoe, Truckee, Woodland, and Yuba City, as well as unincorporated areas.

The 837 area code has never been used for local California customers. Prior to its implementation in California, 837 area codes were usually used by phone customers in Texas.

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