603 Forever! Early Work Secures First Lifespan Extension

Concord, NH – On Oct 31st, Governor Chris Sununu announced that following his "Don't Overload the Code" Executive Order, federal regulators have updated the projected exhaustion date for the 603 area code to the third quarter of 2029.

On Oct 31st's announcement marks a significant improvement from the projected exhaustion date at the commencement of this initiative one year ago today.

"The 603 area code has incredible symbolic and economic value for New Hampshire and we have taken tremendous strides to protect it," said Governor Chris Sununu. "There is much work to be done, but we have set off on the right foot to extend its lifespan for years to come."

"Governor Sununu and the legislature charged the Department of Energy with saving the 6o3, and we knew we had to get the job done," said NH DOE Commissioner Jared Chicoine. "The 'Don't Overload the Code' initiative is seeing early success thanks to the collaborative work of New Hampshire government, private sector providers, and our federal partners. We are working hard to continue that success in the future."

"We are encouraged by the success of our early efforts in conserving number resources and the willingness of our industry partners to continue to work collaboratively as we shift our focus to longer term strategies that should further extend the life of the 603 area code," said Amanda Noonan, NH DOE Regulatory Director.

The "Don't Overload the Code" initiative began with Governor Sununu's Executive Order 2023-07, which required NH DOE to open a proceeding to investigate strategies to extend the 603 area code and directed the Department of Business and Economic Affairs (BEA) to complete a study on the costs of implementing a new area code.

BEA recently released its report on the economic impact of adding a second area code. According to analysis provided in that report, adding a new area code could yield "…a potential $497 million cost to the state's business community in a single year."

In July, Governor Sununu signed SB 603, which updated the NH DOE's authorities related to telephone number conservation and directed NH DOE to "promote and adopt telephone number conservation measures to the maximum extent allowed by federal law…"

Note: A copy of the Department of Energy's Investigation Proceeding Relative to Telephone Number Conservation, and a copy of the BEA report, can be found here