A service that provides the receiver of a telephone call with the number of the calling phone. This is what makes caller ID work.

The phone number associated (for billing purposes) with the working phone number.

A company providing long distance service between LECs and LATAs.

The local or regional telephone company that owns and operates the lines in your area.

A geographic service area defined in the AT&T Modified Final Judgment. LATAs are represented by a 3 character code. There are 200 LATAs in the United States.

Calls made from your home to other states. Interstate communications are regulated by the FCC.

Communications within a Local Access Transport Area.

Communications within a single state. Intrastate communications are regulated by the FCC.

Known as Number Portability Service Charge, this fee started to appear on many local telephone bills in February of 1999. This fee allows local telephone companies to recover costs associated with supporting the technical capabilities to allow a consumer or business to retain an existing telephone number when switching to another local provider. Local companies are allowed, but not required to pass on these charges; however, most do.

This charge is designed to compensate your local telephone company for the costs associated with providing the "local loop" service. Long distance companies may pass this cost along to their customers, and the majority do!

Long distance companies, and - in most cases - local providers charge this fee as a part of a federal program to subsidize local telephone service for low-income consumers, schools, libraries, and rural health care Facilities.