The American Telephone and Telegraph Company (AT&T) organization as it existed prior to 1984, when the Modified Final Judgement (MFJ), also known as the Divestiture Decree, caused AT&T to divest itself of the 22 wholly owned operating companies and reorganize the remainder.The Bell System comprised AT&T, the Western Electric Company, Bell Telephone Laboratories (Bell Labs), and the operating companies. AT&T comprised the General Departments (e.g., Accounting, Finance, Legal, Engineering, Marketing, Human Resources, Public Relations, and Labor Relations) and the Long Lines Department. Long Lines owned and operated long distance transmission facilities and certain switching systems to interconnect the operating telephone companies and provide connectivity with foreign countries.Western Electric was the manufacturing and supply unit for Long Lines and the operating telephone companies. Bell Laboratories (Bell Labs) was funded by AT&T and Western Electric and operated as a nonprofit corporation charged with research and development. Bell Labs was organized into 9 areas, including Research and Patents, Electronics Technology, Transmission Systems, Switching Systems, Military Systems, Computer Technology and Information Systems, and Business Information Systems Programs. The Bell System Operating Companies comprises 24 operating telephone companies, 22 of which were wholly owned (counting Bell Telephone Company of Nevada, which actually was wholly owned by Pacific Telephone and Telegraph Company. AT&T also owned a minority interest in Cincinnati Bell and Southern New England Telephone Company (SNET). The wholly owned Bell Operating Companies (BOCs) and their states of operation were as follows: