Local Access And Transport Area (LATA) is a term defined in United States telecommunications regulation. A LATA is a geographical area of the United States under the terms of the Modification of Final Judgment (MFJ) entered by the United States District Court for the District of Columbia in Civil Action number 82-0192 or any other geographic area designated as a LATA in the National Exchange Carrier Association, Inc., Tariff FCC No. 4, that precipitated the breakup of the original AT&T into the "Baby Bells" or created since that time for wireline regulation.
Generally, a LATA represents an area within which a divested Regional Bell Operating Company (RBOC) is permitted to offer exchange telecommunications and exchange access services. Under the terms of the MFJ, the RBOCs are generally prohibited from providing services that originate in one LATA and terminate in another.
LATA boundaries tend to be drawn around markets, and not necessarily along existing state or area code borders. Some LATAs cross over state boundaries, such as those for the New York metropolitan area and Greenwich, Connecticut; Chicago, Illinois; Portland, Oregon; and areas between Maryland, Virginia, and West Virginia. Area codes and LATAs do not necessarily share boundaries; many LATAs exist in multiple area codes, and many area codes exist in multiple LATAs.
Originally, the LATAs were grouped into regions within which one particular RBOC was allowed to provide services. The LATAs in each of these regions are numbered beginning with the same digit. Generally, the LATAs were associated with carriers or other indications in the following manner:
DigitArea/UseRBOC0xxunused1xxNew York & New EnglandNYNEX (now Verizon and Consolidated Communications)2xxMid-AtlanticBell Atlantic (now Verizon and Frontier)3xxGreat LakesAmeritech (now AT&T Inc.)4xxSoutheastBellSouth (now AT&T Inc.)5xxSouth-centralSouthwestern Bell (now AT&T Inc.)6xxPacific Northwest, Midwest, and Rocky MountainsUS West (now CenturyLink)7xxCalifornia and NevadaPacific Bell (now AT&T Inc.)8xxNon-contiguous and international areas9xxOther/Expansion
In addition to this list, two local carriers were made independent: Cincinnati Bell in the Cincinnati area, and SNET (a former unit of AT&T, sold to Frontier) in Connecticut. These were assigned LATAs in the 9xx range.
Since the breakup of the Bell System in 1984, however, some amount of deregulation, as well as a number of phone company mergers, have blurred the significance of these regions. A number of new LATAs have been formed within these regions since their inception, most beginning with the digit 9.
LATAs contribute to an often confusing aspect of long-distance telephone service. Due to the various and overlapping regulatory limitations and inter-business arrangements, phone companies typically provide differing types of “long distance” service, each with potentially different rates: within same LATA, within same state within same LATA, between different states between different LATAs, within same state between different LATAs, between different states Given the complexity of the legal and financial issues involved in each distinction, many long-distance companies tend to not explain the details of these different rates, which can lead to billing questions from surprised customers.
Local carriers have various alternative terms for LATAs such as “Service Area” by Pacific Bell in California, or “Regional Calling Area” by Verizon in Maryland.
To facilitate the sharing of Telcordia telephone routing databases between countries, LATAs were later defined for the provinces of Canada, the other countries and territories of the North American Numbering Plan, and Mexico. Aside from U.S. territories, LATAs have no regulatory purpose in these areas. In 2000, the Canadian Radio-television and Telecommunications Commission eliminated all Canadian provincial LATAs in favor of a single LATA for Canada (888).
No LATAs exist with a second digit of 0 or 1, which distinguished them from traditional area codes.
List of LATAs
US state LATAs The city or place name given with some LATAs is the name given to identify the LATA, not the limit of its boundary. Generally this is the most significant metropolitan area in the LATA. In some cases, a LATA is named after the largest phone exchange in the LATA that was historically served by an RBOC. For example, the largest city in the Pahrump LATA in Nevada is Las Vegas. Since Las Vegas was not historically served by an RBOC, the LATA is named after the smaller town of Pahrump, which was historically served by Nevada Bell (now AT&T Inc.). Also, listing under a state does not necessarily limit the LATA's territory to that state; there may be overlaps as well as enclaves. Areas that include notable portions of other states are explained, but not all LATA state overlaps may be detailed.
LATA boundaries are not always solidly defined. Inter-carrier agreements, change proposals to the Federal Communications Commission (FCC), and new wiring developments into rural areas can and do often alter the effective borders between LATAs. Many sources on LATA boundary information conflict with each other at detailed levels. Telcordia data may provide the most up-to-date details of LATA inclusions.
Alabama 476 Birmingham 477 Huntsville 478 Montgomery Includes Georgetown, Georgia 480 Mobile Includes areas of Mississippi north of Pascagoula Includes parts of northern Escambia County, Florida, in the Century and Walnut Hill areas
Alaska 832
Arizona 666 Phoenix Includes Winterhaven, California Includes Spirit Mountain, Nevada Includes Glen Canyon, Utah 668 Tucson Includes Rodeo and Virden, New Mexico 980 Navajo Nation (Arizona portion) Includes southwestern San Juan County, Utah
Arkansas 526 Fort Smith Includes part of Oklahoma from Pocola to Moffett Includes section of Oklahoma from Colcord to Watts Includes small part of Barry County, Missouri Includes area of Oklahoma near Maysville, Arkansas Includes area of Oklahoma near Uniontown, Arkansas 528 Little Rock Includes Watson, Oklahoma 530 Pine Bluff Includes Junction City, Louisiana
California 722 San Francisco 724 Chico 726 Sacramento 728 Fresno 730 Los Angeles Includes La Paz County, Arizona 732 San Diego 734 Bakersfield 736 Monterey 738 Stockton 740 San Luis Obispo 973 Palm Springs
Colorado 656 Denver 658 Colorado Springs
Connecticut 920
Washington, D.C. 236 Includes the west portion of the West Bay of Maryland, as far north as Damascus, Maryland (roughly Montgomery, Prince George's, Charles, and St. Mary's counties of Maryland) Includes the northeasternmost portion of Virginia, from Sterling to just north of Fredericksburg (roughly Northern Virginia)
Florida
448 Pensacola Includes Clear Springs, Wing and Florala, Alabama 450 Panama City Includes a small portion of Georgia near Tallahassee 452 Jacksonville 454 Gainesville 456 Daytona Beach 458 Orlando 460 Southeast Florida 939 Fort Myers 952 Tampa 953 Tallahassee Florida is a special case in which state regulators have also assigned 5-digit LATA codes which overlay the Federally-assigned 3-digit LATAs. See map on the right for details. Some carriers refer to these by the 3-digit LATA, others by the 5-digit.
Georgia 438 Atlanta Includes portion of Alabama from Oakland to Huguley Includes Phenix City, Alabama Includes Ranburne, Alabama 440 Savannah Includes part of southern South Carolina as far north as Hardeeville and Hilton Head Island 442 Augusta Includes Aiken County and Edgefield County, South Carolina 444 Albany 446 Macon
Hawaii 834
Idaho 652 Southern Idaho Includes Malheur County, Oregon, especially the Ontario area Includes Jackpot, Jarbidge, and Owyhee, Nevada Includes Alta and Border, Wyoming 960 Coeur d'Alene Includes part of northwest Montana as far east as Eureka and as far south as Libby Includes Pullman, Washington and surrounding area Includes Pend Oreille County, Washington
Illinois 358 Chicago Includes Lake County and Newton County, Indiana, especially the Gary, Indiana area Includes Demotte, Hebron, and Lakes of the Four Seasons, Indiana Extends into Wisconsin Salem Township 360 Rockford Extends into Wisconsin near Apple River, Illinois 362 Cairo 364 Sterling 366 Forrest 368 Peoria 370 Champaign May include areas of Indiana near Danville, Illinois 374 Springfield 376 Quincy 976 Mattoon 977 Macomb 978 Olney
Indiana 330 Evansville 332 South Bend 334 Auburn-Huntington 336 Indianapolis Extends into Illinois near Dana, Indiana 338 Bloomington 937 Richmond Includes Union City, Ohio 938 Terre Haute Includes Edgar and Clark counties of Illinois May include Robinson, Illinois
Iowa 630 Sioux City Extends into Minnesota near incorporated areas of Iowa along its length Includes the eastern portions of Dakota and Thurston counties of Nebraska Includes North Sioux City, South Dakota, and extends into South Dakota near Akron and Hawarden, Iowa 632 Des Moines Extends into Missouri from Andover, Missouri to south of Davis City, Iowa 634 Davenport Includes portion of Illinois as far as Geneseo and Aledo Includes the Galena, Illinois area 635 Cedar Rapids
Kansas 524 Kansas City (see Missouri for details) 532 Wichita 534 Topeka
Kentucky 462 Louisville Includes the central southern area of Indiana around Salem 464 Owensboro 466 Winchester
Louisiana 492 Baton Rouge 486 Shreveport 488 Lafayette 490 New Orleans
Maine 120
Maryland 236 see Washington, D.C.; most of this LATA is actually in Maryland 238 Baltimore 240 Hagerstown Includes the easternmost part of West Virginia around Martinsburg as far as Route 9 Includes the northwestern part of the Eastern Panhandle of West Virginia including Keyser, from Grant County to Short Gap Includes area of Pennsylvania just north of Hancock, Maryland 242 Salisbury
Massachusetts 126 Western Massachusetts 128 Eastern Massachusetts
Michigan 340 Detroit 342 Upper Peninsula of Michigan Includes portion of Wisconsin around Iron Mountain, Michigan as far as Rhinelander and Townsend, Wisconsin 344 Saginaw 346 Lansing 348 Grand Rapids
Minnesota 620 Rochester 624 Duluth 626 St. Cloud 628 Minneapolis 636 Brainerd, Minnesota–Fargo, North DakotaHalf of LATA 636 occupies eastern North Dakota, the other half takes up the northwest quarter of Minnesota.
Mississippi 482 Jackson Includes parts of Alabama around Columbus, Mississippi 484 Biloxi
Missouri 520 St. Louis Includes part of south-central Illinois southwest of Springfield. 521 Westphalia (per locallingguide.com, includes Columbia MO) 522 Springfield 524 Kansas City Includes eastern portion of Kansas as far out as U.S. 73 and U.S. 59 and south as far as U.S. 54 521 Central Missouri: Columbia and surrounding areas
Montana 648 Great Falls 650 Billings 963 Kalispell (historical) note: LATA 963 appears on many LATA lists, and at least one map, but is no longer a separate LATA-equivalent area. It is now part of LATA 648.
Nebraska 644 Omaha 646 Grand Island 958 Lincoln
Nevada 720 Reno May include Alpine, Verdi and Coleville, California 721 Pahrump
New Hampshire 122 Includes part of Vermont around Groton Includes part of Maine around Kittery and Wilsons Mills
New Jersey 220 Atlantic Coastal New Jersey 222 Delaware Valley 224 North Jersey
New Mexico 664
New York 132 New York City and surrounding metropolitan area Includes Greenwich, Connecticut 133 Poughkeepsie Includes Milford, Pennsylvania and surrounding area 134 Albany Includes Hancock, Massachusetts 136 Syracuse 138 Binghamton Includes Sayre, Pennsylvania and surrounding area 140 Buffalo Includes Ulysses, Pennsylvania and surrounding area 921 Fishers Island 974 Rochester
North Carolina 420 Asheville 422 Charlotte Includes York County and Lancaster County, South Carolina 424 Greensboro-Winston-Salem area 426 Raleigh 428 Wilmington 949 Fayetteville