This has been brought up before and discussed to no final conclusion. I am more interested at this point in actually doing something, so I would like to issue a final-round-of-discussion request for comments prior to making this happen. I propose that a large block (say, /8 to /10) be allocated to an independent authority which will then reallocate growable blocks to small to mid level ISPs in the northern california region who are connecting via providers attached to MAE-W, CIX, or PacBell's NAP and topologically "at" those connect points. These addresses can then be filtered out of announcements to routers anywhere else in the world and replaced with a /8 aggregate announcement; only routers within the topology zone would require full information on the connected entities. These addresses will be relatively easy to dual-home within the area, yet will have minimal impact on the global routing infrastructure. To minimize the number of routes announced within the area, all addresses assigned would be sufficient for 6-month in the future at demonstrated growth rates, and reservations for up to 18 months in the future at demonstrated growth rates would be made when possible (giving the inherent ability to grow /20's to /19s and /18s etc. rather than have to make a new announcement). A minimum size of /20 would be required for entrance; smaller ISPs would have to go through traditional allocation-from-their-upstream-provider channels. This would tend to make brand new startups avoid cluttering the space until their growth was established and measured. Some sort of nominal fee on the order of $1 to $2.50 per /24 equiv would probably support the operation just fine, which should be within the range nobody will object to. Comments, suggestions, pointing out of fatal flaws or anyone stating they will be completely unwilling to go along with this are solicited (though I would appreciate an explanation for objections or refusals 8-). Thank you. -george william herbert gherbert@crl.com