Last week, the FCC
issued a report and order for the federal E-Rate program regarding Category Two rules which will take effect starting in funding year 2021. This is in response to the public comments the FCC received from ASBO International, our members who submitted feedback, and other advocates seeking to protect E-Rate funding over this summer. Here are some highlights of the FCC's changes, as reported from
this Funds for Learning blog:
Rules starting in Funding Year 2021
- All applicant budgets will be reset
- The program will adopt "fixed" five-year budget cycles
- Category Two budgets will be calculated on a school district or library system basis
- The per-site funding "floor" will be increased from $9,200 per site to $25,000
- Category Two budgets will be calculated as an inflation-adjusted $167 per student for schools and $4.50 per square foot for all libraries (both rural and urban)
- Equipment transfer rules will be eliminated
- A new budget cycle will begin in subsequent five-year periods (e.g. FY2026) with no rollover of funds from cycle-to-cycle
Rules for Funding Year 2020
- The eligibility of caching equipment and services, Basic Maintenance of Internal Connections, and Managed Internal Broadband Services will be retained, with no new services added to the program's Eligible Services List
- Category Two budgets will be calculated using the same per-site methodology used in FY2015-2019.
- All applicants' site budgets will be increased by 20% (i.e. one-fifth of the maximum FY2020 C2 budget) for FY2020
- Applicants can seek C2 discounts up to each site's maximum budget amount, less any amount utilized in the initial five-year period
- All C2 site budgets will expire at the end of FY2020 and will not carryover to FY2021
Thanks to your advocacy efforts, the FCC has listened to most of our concerns about improving the E-Rate program; we appreciate your support! While there is always room for improvement, such as allowing funds to be spent on cybersecurity for school districts (which wasn't adopted), we are pleased to see the FCC is listening to the education community to make adjustments for the program. For more reading on the order and its impact to schools,
check out this analysis from EdScoop.
------------------------------
ASBO USA
asbousa@asbointl.org------------------------------
Original Message:
Sent: 09-18-2019 08:29
From: ASBO USA
Subject: Advocacy Opportunity: Protect E-Rate Funding
E-Rate Advocacy Update:
Over the summer, ASBO International has been deeply engaged in advocacy efforts to protect and preserve the Universal Service Fund's (USF) Schools and Libraries Program a.k.a. "E-Rate."
In July, the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) issued a Notice of Proposed Rule Making (NPRM) that would implement 1) an overall funding cap for all USF programs, and 2) a sub-cap combining E-Rate with rural health care, which would pit programs against each other for funding. ASBO International engaged in a grassroots effort to mobilize members at the 2019 Legislative Advocacy Conference and on the Global School Business Network to oppose the FCC proposal, which ended in August.
Subsequently, the FCC issued a second notice asking a series of questions related to E-Rate Category Two. Thanks to the leadership and input of ASBO International's Legislative Advisory Committee (LAC), ASBO responded to the FCC Category Two proposal at the organizational level. ASBO International submitted formal comments in coordination with the Education and Libraries Network Consortium (EdLiNC; an E-rate coalition ASBO is a member of), and additional comments with the Consortium for School Networking (CoSN) and AASA, The School Superintendents Association. Both comments are attached, and a summary of talking points are below.
- The FCC should continue with the current formula for Category Two funding to support internal connections;
- The pre-discount Category Two budget costs of up to $150 per-pupil formula, as well as $2.45/nonurban or $5.32/urban per square foot library formulas, are inadequate and need to be increased;
- Rural and small schools and public libraries should have their Category Two funding floor increased to ensure that they are also able to provide sufficient Wi-Fi to their students and library patrons;
- Establish a common fixed five-year budget cycle for Category Two applicants;
- Transition to Category Two district-wide and library system-wide; and
- Making cybersecurity and Wi-Fi on school buses eligible E-Rate uses.
ASBO International will continue advocating to preserve and improve the E-Rate program to support schools and libraries, and we sincerely thank all our members who have been working with us on this issue!
------------------------------
ASBO USA
asbousa@asbointl.org
Original Message:
Sent: 08-19-2019 07:17
From: ASBO USA
Subject: Advocacy Opportunity: Protect E-Rate Funding
Earlier this month, we posted a blog about an advocacy opportunity to protect E-Rate funding, and there is still time to act (deadline is August 26).
The Federal Communications Commission (FCC) is inviting public comments on a proposal to establish an umbrella funding cap on all Universal Service Fund (USF) programs in addition to the caps the individual programs (E-Rate, LifeLine, Rural Health Services, etc.) already have. The umbrella cap would essentially pit programs against each other to compete for limited funding and undermine the effectiveness of E-Rate and other USF programs. The FCC needs to hear from district leaders about how critical the E-Rate program is and that the proposal is misguided and would harm schools. Please read the blog for more information, instructions to submit comments, and suggested talking points if you need assistance.
------------------------------
ASBO USA
asbousa@asbointl.org
------------------------------