Iowa rolls out its second new area code this weekend. The current 3-1-9 area is being split in two, with the far eastern section along the Mississippi River falling under the new 5-6-3 code. Iowa Utilities Board spokesman Rob Hillesland says on Sunday, Iowans begin a nine-month “permissive dialing period” for 5-6-3.Hillesland says permissive dialing means you can dial either area code for the next nine months and your call will go through. The new code becomes mandatory December 2nd. Hillesland says it’s important that people in the new area start pushing the use of 5-6-3.Regulators found some problems when the 5-1-5 area code was split into 6-4-1. He says now is the time to test out 5-6-3 and fix any trouble while callers can still get through using the old area code.If there’s trouble getting through using 5-6-3, you should contact your phone service provider. Hillesland says the change is an expensive proposition for some businesses, although no one knows the true cost of the changeover.Hillesland says there will be an education campaign to remind people to use the new area code, just like the campaign used for the new 6-4-1 code.Some of the cities included in the new area code are: Decorah, Elkader, Strawberry Point, Dubuque, Manchester, Clinton, Tipton, Davenport and Muscatine.
