BALTIMORE, MD—A new telephone area code will soon be coming to Maryland.

The Maryland Public Service Commission on Wednesday announced the assignment of 227 as a new area code which will eventually serve the same geographic area in Maryland currently served by the 240 and 301 area codes. The Commission voted on August 3, 2022, to approve a petition filed by the North American Numbering Plan Administrator (NANPA), which is the neutral third-party entity that allocates telephone numbering resources.

Dwindling Supply of Existing 240/301 Phone Numbers

The 240/301 calling area serves residents and businesses in Allegany, Charles, Garrett, Montgomery, Prince George’s, St. Mary’s, and Washington counties. Other impacted counties are Frederick, Howard, Carroll, and Anne Arundel.

The remaining supply of available telephone numbers in the 240/301 area is estimated to be exhausted in the second quarter of 2023 – requiring the establishment of a new area code to support future demands in the region. Customers with a 240 or 301 area code will maintain their existing area codes and their phone numbers will not change.

Under the implementation plan approved by the PSC, no new 227 numbers will be assigned in the area until the remaining 240/301 numbers are completely exhausted. When those remaining 240/301 numbers are exhausted all future phone number assignments will be made in the new 227 area code.

No Changes Required for Dialing Calls

Because the 240/301 region is served by two overlay area codes, callers are already required to use 10-digit dialing when making calls. Callers in this area have been using 10-digit dialing for more than 20 years, since the 240 area code was introduced in 1997.

Because 10-digit dialing is already well established in this region, the eventual addition of the new 227 area code covering the same geographic area will not require any changes to the way area residents and businesses dial telephone calls – aside from using the new area code, when necessary.

According to the NANPA petition, the dialing plan for the area code will remain the same:

• Local calls to and from other numbers inside the 240/301/227 area:
  Dial 10-digits.
• Toll calls from the 240/301/227 area to numbers in another area code:
  Dial 1 + 10-Digits.
• Operator Services (credit card, collect, third party):
  Dial 0 + 10-Digits.

Prepare for 227 Area Code Arrival

While residents in the 240/301/227 area will continue to dial calls the same way they have for more than 20 years, the PSC urges consumers and businesses to be aware of the upcoming addition of a new area code.

Tips to prepare for the eventual start of the new 227 area code include:

• Checking devices to verify that area codes are included with all stored numbers.
• Continuing to program/save/store phone numbers to all devices using the full 10-digit
  telephone number.
• Verifying that all services and equipment – such as automatic dialers, life-safety &
  medical alert systems, alarm/security systems and security gates, call-forwarding
  settings and voicemail services – recognize the new area code as a valid phone number.

The PSC will continue to update consumers and businesses in the 240/301 region as the implementation of the new 227 area code draws closer.

Photo via Pixabay