Verizon Proposes Extended Area Calling Plan For Customers in 42 Additional Illinois Exchanges

BLOOMINGTON, Ill. -- Verizon Communications is asking the Illinois Commerce Commission (ICC) for approval to offer a money-saving calling plan with expanded local calling areas to customers in 42 additional exchanges across the state. The company filed its request with the commission last Thursday.

Under the extended area calling plan, Verizon North customers would be able to call additional nearby communities without paying long-distance charges. They could call these communities by dialing just seven digits, instead of 1 + 10 digits as they do now. Also, calls within their new calling area but outside their area code, will require the area code and local number. (Note: A list of new local calling areas for customers in these exchanges follows this release.)

"We are continuing to enhance the value of our service," said James R. Hargrave, Verizon assistant vice president - public policy & external affairs for Illinois. "Our new calling plan provides more rate options for our customers and delivers lower-priced calling alternatives."

The new plan would allow residential and business customers to call all communities within the same market service area (MSA) and a 15-mile radius of their own exchange without paying local toll charges. With the proposed calling plan, all such calls would be considered local. If approved by the ICC, the plan will take effect Aug. 21.

With the plan, customers would need to dial 7 digits to reach other numbers within their area code and MSA or, 10 digits (area code + telephone number) to all other area codes. Customers will need to reprogram fax machines, PBXs, key systems, alarm systems, medical alert systems, dial-up numbers for Internet access or Custom Calling features to work with the new, shorter telephone numbers.

Verizon is seeking to expand the calling plan to its customers in the following exchanges: Apple River, Beaverville, Belvidere, Byron, Capron, Cedar Point, Cedarville, Cherry Valley, Clifton, Dakota, Davis, Donovan, Earlville, Elizabeth, Forreston, Garden Prairie, German Valley, Granville, Hanover, Leland, Lena, Massbach, McConnell, New Milford, Orangeville, Paw Paw, Pearl City, Poplar Grove, Rock Cut, Rockton, Roscoe, Sandwich, Scales Mound, Seward, Sheridan, Shirland, Somonauk, Stillman Valley, Stockton, Warren, Winnebago and Winslow.

If approved by the ICC, the exchanges that were offered Expanded Area Service last year will automatically have EAS as a standard part of the basic local calling area. The current monthly service charge and billing will remain the same. Those exchanges are: Ashkum, Chebanse, Durand, Freeport, Hebron, Martinton, Pecatonica, Richmond, Sheldon, Spring Grove and Wonder Lake.

The extended calling plan currently is available to Verizon North customers in 192 exchanges across the state. The company plans to request permission to make the plan available to all Verizon North customers in the state over the next year.

Since GTE and Bell Atlantic merged to become Verizon last year, the company has reduced its local rates in Illinois by more than $10 million. In addition, the company is committed to investing $270 million over three years in its existing telecommunications infrastructure.

Under the new calling plan, local calls to additional nearby communities would be priced at current, local Usage Sensitive Service rates. Usage Sensitive Service has a $17.02 monthly fee ($16.02 for Freeport), plus a call-connection charge of 3 cents per call and a 1.8-cents-per-minute calling charge. Costs for calls within the home exchange will remain the same; residential customers currently pay 3.4 cents per call with no per-minute calling charges. Business customers currently pay a call-connection charge of 1.88 cents and a 0.93-cents-per-minute calling charge. These charges are discounted 50 percent on weekends, holidays and from 9 p.m. to 8 a.m. on weekdays.

Residential customers under the extended calling area plan can also select the
11-cents-per-call option. Under this option, they pay the same monthly fee as before, $17.02 ($16.02 for Freeport), plus a flat, 11-cents-per-call charge with no per-minute charge for calls to nearby communities. Calls within the home exchange will remain priced at 3.4 cents each, with no per-minute calling charges. These charges also are discounted 50 percent on weekends, holidays and from 9 p.m. to 8 a.m. on weekdays.

Details of the proposed calling plan will be provided to Verizon North customers in the 42 additional Illinois exchanges in their bills soon.

Verizon Communications

Verizon Communications (NYSE:VZ) is one of the world's leading providers of communications services. Verizon companies are the largest providers of wireline and wireless communications in the United States, with 112 million access line equivalents and 27 million wireless customers. Verizon is also the largest directory publisher in the world. A Fortune 10 company with approximately 260,000 employees and more than $65 billion in annual revenues, Verizon's global presence extends to 40 countries in the Americas, Europe, Asia and the Pacific. For more information on Verizon, visit www.verizon.com.

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New Local Calling Areas

Extended Area Service Calling Plan

The listed towns identify telephone exchanges included in Verizon's new calling plan. Because an exchange can include more than one community, customers with telephone prefixes on this chart are included in the offering. New calling areas are in bold type.

Calls from the Apple River exchange (815) 813: Elizabeth, Scales Mound, Stockton and Warren.

Calls from the Ashkum exchange (815) 698, 771: Chebanse, Clifton, Crescent City, Danforth, Gilman, Herscher, Martinton, Onarga, Stelle and Watseka.

Calls from the Beaverville exchange (815) 435: Chebanse, Clifton, Donovan, Martinton, Momence, Sheldon, St. Anne and Watseka.

Calls from the Belvidere exchange (815) 544, 547: Capron, Cherry Valley, Garden Prairie, New Milford, Poplar Grove, Rock Cut, Rockford and Roscoe.

Calls from the Byron exchange (815) 234: German Valley, New Milford, Pecatonica, Rockford, Seward, Stillman Valley and Winnebago.

Calls from the Capron exchange (815) 569: Belvidere, Garden Prairie, Poplar Grove, Rock Cut and Roscoe.

Calls from the Cedar Point exchange (815) 446: Depue, Granville, La Salle, McNabb, Oglesby, Tonica and Utica.

Calls from the Cedarville exchange (815) 563: Dakota, Davis, Freeport, German Valley, Lena, McConnell, Orangeville, Pearl City, Pecatonica and Winslow.

Calls from the Chebanse exchange (815) 697, 781: Ashkum, Beaverville, Clifton, Danforth, Herscher, Kankakee, Martinton, St. Anne and Estelle.

Calls from the Cherry Valley exchange (815) 332: Belvidere, Garden Prairie, New Milford, Poplar Grove, Rock Cut, Rockford, Roscoe and Stillman Valley.

Calls from the Clifton exchange (815) 694: Ashkum, Beaverville, Chebanse, Crescent City, Danforth, Gilman, Herscher, Kankakee, Martinton, St. Anne and Stelle.

Calls from the Dakota exchange (815) 449: Cedarville, Davis, Durand, Freeport, German Valley, McConnell, Orangeville, Pecatonica and Seward.

Calls from the Davis exchange (815) 865: Dakota, Durand, Freeport, German Valley, Orangeville, Pecatonica, Seward, Shirland and Winnebago.

Calls from the Donovan exchange (815) 486: Beaverville, Crescent City, Martinton, Sheldon, St. Anne, Watseka and Woodland.

Calls from the Durand exchange (815) 248, 805: Dakota, Davis, Pecatonica, Rockton, Seward, Shirland and Winnebago.

Calls from the Earlville exchange (815) 246: Harding, Leland, Mendota, Paw Paw, Sheridan and Somonauk.

Calls from the Elizabeth exchange (815) 858: Apple River, Hanover, Massbach, Scales Mound and Stockton.

Calls from the Forreston exchange (815) 938: Freeport, German Valley, Seward and Shannon.

Calls from the Freeport exchange (815) 232, 233, 235, 266, 297 and 599: Cedarville, Dakota, Davis, Forreston, German Valley, Lena, McConnell, Orangeville, Pearl City, Pecatonica and Seward.

Calls from the Garden Prairie exchange (815) 597: Belvidere, Capron, Cherry Valley, Poplar Grove and Rock Cut.

Calls from the German Valley exchange (815) 362: Byron, Cedarville, Dakota, Davis, Forreston, Freeport, Pecatonica, Seward and Winnebago.

Calls from the Granville exchange (815) 339: Cedar Point, Depue, Hennepin, La Salle, McNabb, Oglesby, Tonica and Utica.

Calls from the Hanover exchange (815) 591: Elizabeth and Massbach.

Calls from the Hebron exchange (815) 648 : Fox Lake, Harvard, McHenry, Pistakee Lake, Richmond, Spring Grove, Wonder Lake and Woodstock.

Calls from the Leland exchange (815) 495: Earlville, Harding, Newark, Paw Paw, Plano, Sandwich, Sheridan and Somonauk.

Calls from the Lena exchange (815) 369: Cedarville, Freeport, McConnell, Orangeville, Pearl City, Stockton, Warren and Winslow.

Calls from the Martinton exchange (815) 428: Ashkum, Beaverville, Chebanse, Clifton, Crescent City, Danforth, Donovan, Sheldon, St. Anne, Watseka and Woodland.

Calls from the Massbach exchange (815) 598: Elizabeth, Hanover and Stockton.

Calls from the McConnell exchange (815) 868: Cedarville, Dakota, Freeport, Lena, Orangeville, Pearl City, Warren and Winslow.

Calls from the New Milford exchange (815) 873, 874: Belvidere, Byron, Cherry Valley, Rock Cut, Rockford, Seward, Stillman Valley and Winnebago.

Calls from the Orangeville exchange (815) 789: Cedarville, Dakota, Davis, Freeport, Lena, McConnell and Winslow.

Calls from the Paw Paw exchange (815) 627: Compton, Earlville, Harding, Leland and Mendota.

Calls from the Pearl City exchange (815) 443: Cedarville, Freeport, Lena, McConnell and Stockton.

Calls from the Pecatonica exchange (815) 239, 804: Byron, Cedarville, Dakota, Davis, Freeport, German Valley, Rockford, Seward, Shirland and Winnebago.

Calls from the Poplar Grove exchange (815) 765: Belvidere, Capron, Cherry Valley, Garden Prairie, Rock Cut, Rockford, Rockton and Roscoe.

Calls from the Richmond exchange (815) 678 : Antioch, Fox Lake, Hebron, Lake Villa, McHenry, Pistakee Lake, Round Lake, Spring Grove, Wonder Lake and Woodstock.

Calls from the Rock Cut exchange (815) 885: Belvidere, Capron, Cherry Valley, Garden Prairie, New Milford, Poplar Grove, Rockford, Rockton, Roscoe and Shirland.

Calls from the Rockton exchange (815) 624: Durand, Poplar Grove, Rock Cut, Rockford, Roscoe, Shirland and South Beloit.

Calls from the Roscoe exchange (815) 623: Belvidere, Capron, Cherry Valley, Poplar Grove, Rock Cut, Rockford, Rockton, Shirland and South Beloit.

Calls from the Sandwich exchange (815) 786: Big Rock, Kaneville, Leland, Lisbon, Newark, Oswego, Plano, Plattville, Sheridan, Somonauk, Sugar Grove and Yorkville.

Calls from the Scales Mound exchange (815) 845: Apple River, Elizabeth and Warren.

Calls from the Seward exchange (815) 247: Byron, Dakota, Davis, Durand, Forreston, Freeport, German Valley, New Milford, Pecatonica, Rockford, Stillman Valley and Winnebago.

Calls from the Sheldon exchange (815) 429: Beaverville, Donovan, Martinton, Milford, Stockland, Watseka and Woodland.

Calls from the Sheridan exchange (815) 496: Earlville, Harding, Leland, Lisbon, Marseilles, Newark, Ottawa, Plano, Sandwich, Somonauk and Yorkville.

Calls from the Shirland exchange (815) 629: Davis, Durand, Pecatonica, Rock Cut, Rockford, Rockton, Roscoe, South Beloit and Winnebago.

Calls from the Somonauk exchange (815) 498: Big Rock, Earlville, Harding, Leland, Lisbon, Newark, Plano, Sandwich, Sheridan, Sugar Grove and Yorkville.

Calls from the Spring Grove exchange (815) 675: Antioch, Crystal Lake, Grays Lake, Fox Lake, Hebron, Lake Villa, McHenry, Pistakee Highlands, Richmond, Round Lake, Wauconda, Wonder Lake and Woodstock.

Calls from the Stillman Valley exchange (815) 645: Byron, Cherry Valley, New Milford, Rockford, Seward and Winnebago.

Calls from the Stockton exchange (815) 947: Apple River, Elizabeth, Lena, Massbach, Pearl City, Warren and Winslow.

Calls from the Warren exchange (815) 745: Apple River, Lena, McConnell, Scales Mound, Stockton and Winslow.

Calls from the Winnebago exchange (815) 335: Byron, Davis, Durand, German Valley, New Milford, Pecatonica, Rockford, Seward, Shirland and Stillman Valley.

Calls from the Winslow exchange (815) 367: Cedarville, Lena, McConnell, Orangeville, Stockton and Warren.

Calls from the Wonder Lake exchange (815) 653, 728: Antioch, Cary, Crystal Lake, Fox Lake, Harvard, Hebron, Lake Villa, McHenry, Pistakee Highlands, Richmond, Round Lake, Spring Grove, Union, Wauconda and Woodstock.

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