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If it seems like only yesterday that Ventura County was threatened with the loss of its area code, it was.

And the issue is already back, pitting Santa Barbara and San Luis Obispo counties against Ventura County in a potential war over 805, the area code shared among the Tri-Counties.

In 1999, after a years-long planning process, the Tri-Counties breathed a collective sigh of relief when the last split excluded most of Kern County and northern Los Angeles County from 805, but retained the prefix for Ventura, Santa Barbara and San Luis Obispo counties.

Cell phones, the Internet, fax machines and other technology has been gobbling up phone numbers within area code designations; some states have handled the overload by assigning new area codes for such uses while retaining existing area codes for those already in, a fairly painless process. California’s Public Utilities Commission adopted an overlay system in selected areas that require an 11 digit phone number for local calls; such a system will not be repeated, the commission has decided.

The alternative is a massive change of area code overall which can create a huge expense, as an example, changing letterhead stationary.

In the past representatives of the Tri-Counties provided a united front, noting that emergency systems are linked together up and down the coast through the 805 area code. But now that a new split is required - estimates of when 805 prefix phone numbers would run out range from two to four years - and it is creating a split in the Tri-Counties with each county filing paperwork requesting that they be allowed to keep 805.

Ventura County officials are confident that the larger population base locally will determine the winner but plan on waging a fight over retaining 805 with cities individually supporting the request, including Santa Paula.

A public hearing on the matter will be held sometime in March; the meeting is expected to be held in Ventura.