Thursday, May 2, 1996

No rural counties fighting for 817 area code

By MICHAEL BRICK
Harte-Hanks Austin Bureau

AUSTIN - With a decision on a new area code for Fort Worth and part of West Texas in the works, rural counties are noticeably absent from the bargaining table.

State officials predict Wichita Falls and much of West Texas will be forced to change area codes this year due to rapidly depleting numbers in the 817 area code. The area code stretches from south of Waco to west of Wichita Falls and includes Eastland, Stephens, Young, Haskell, Knox, Throckmorton and portions of Callahan, Comanche and Stonewall counties.

The state plans to create a new area code by November. A Sept. 1 deadline has been pushed back as the Public Utility Commission moves its offices.

The commission sent out a letter Monday announcing a May 21 planning session to all intervening parties in the decision. Dozens of groups, including telephone companies, businesses and the City of Fort Worth, have applied to become intervening parties.

But no representative has stepped forward from West Texas, said Carole Vogel, who heads the planning committee for the commission. Vogel plans to hold public forums in West Texas.

"We're going to take this show on the road, but it might be a good idea to get a preview," Vogel said. "Fort Worth's definitely going to be there."

Areas across the state are running out of phone numbers as nontraditional lines like fax machines and cellular phones grow in popularity.

As the commission decides how to break up the 817 code, Fort Worth has population on its side, and the city has begun actively lobbying the commission to keep the 817 code.

Danny Reed, energy manager for Fort Worth, said switching area codes will be a hassle and a major expense for the area that loses the 817 code. For example, it will be costly for companies to reprint stationery with new phone numbers.

"That is going to affect (businesses) tremendously," he said. "That is the case for Fort Worth as it is for a small town in West Texas."