(a) Local number portability administration shall comply with the recommendations of the North American Numbering Council (NANC) as set forth in the report to the Commission prepared by the NANC's Local Number Portability Administration Selection Working Group, dated April 25, 1997 (Working Group Report) and its appendices, which are incorporated by reference pursuant to 5 U.S.C. 552(a) and 1 CFR part 51. Except that: Sections 7.8 and 7.10 of Appendix D and the following portions of Appendix E: Section 7, Issue Statement I of Appendix A, and Appendix B in the Working Group Report are not incorporated herein.

(b) In addition to the requirements set forth in the Working Group Report, the following requirements are established:

(1) Each designated N-1 carrier (as described in the Working Group Report) is responsible for ensuring number portability queries are performed on a N-1 basis where “N” is the entity terminating the call to the end user, or a network provider contracted by the entity to provide tandem access, unless another carrier has already performed the query;

(2) If a telecommunictions carrier transmits a telephone call to a local exchange carrier's switch that contains any ported numbers, and the telecommunications carrier has failed to perform a database query to determine if the telephone number has been ported to another local exchange carrier, the local exchange carrier may block the unqueried call only if performing the database query is likely to impair network reliability;

(3) The regional limited liability companies (LLCs), already established by telecommunications carriers in each of the original Bell Operating Company regions, shall manage and oversee the local number portability administrators, subject to review by the NANC, but only on an interim basis, until the conclusion of a rulemaking to examine the issue of local number portability administrator oversight and management and the question of whether the LLCs should continue to act in this capacity; and

(4) The NANC shall provide ongoing oversight of number portability administration, including oversight of the regional LLCs, subject to Commission review. Parties shall attempt to resolve issues regarding number portability deployment among themselves and, if necessary, under the auspices of the NANC. If any party objects to the NANC's proposed resolution, the NANC shall issue a written report summarizing the positions of the parties and the basis for the recommendation adopted by the NANC. The NANC Chair shall submit its proposed resolution of the dispuited issue to the Chief of the Wireline Competition Bureau as a recommendation for Commission review. The Chief of the Wireline Competition Bureau will place the NANC's proposed resolution on public notice. Recommendations adopted by the NANC and forwarded to the Bureau may be implemented by the parties pending review of the recommendation. Within 90 days of the conclusion of the comment cycle, the Chief of the Wireline Competition Bureau may issue an order adopting, modifying, or rejecting the recommendation. If the Chief does not act within 90 days of the conclusion of the comment cycle, the recommendation will be deemed to have been adopted by the Bureau.

(c) The Director of the Federal Register approves this incorporation by reference in accordance with 5 U.S.C. 552(a) and 1 CFR part 51. Copies of the Working Group Report and its appendices can be inspected during normal business hours at the Federal Communications Commission's Reference Information Center, located at the address of the FCC's main office indicated in 47 CFR 0.401(a), or at the National Archives and Records Administration (NARA). For information on the availability of this material at NARA, call (202) 741-6030, or go to: https://www.archives.gov/federal-register/cfr/ibr-locations.html. The Working Group Report and its appendices are also available on the internet at https://docs.fcc.gov/public/attachments/DOC-341177A1.pdf.

[62 FR 48786, Sept. 17, 1997, as amended at 65 FR 58466, Sept. 29, 2000; 67 FR 13226, Mar. 21, 2002; 69 FR 18803, Apr. 9, 2004; 74 FR 31638, July 2, 2009; 75 FR 35315, June 22, 2010; 83 FR 42052, Aug. 20, 2018; 85 FR 64407, Oct. 13, 2020]