THE ABCs OF ERATE

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THE ABCs OF E-RATE

• March 1, 2007

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Overview

• Schools and Libraries Program
• Provides discounts to eligible schools and
  libraries for Telecommunications Services,
  Internet Access, Internal Connections, and Basic
  Maintenance
• Applicants can be schools, libraries, or
  consortia, but only eligible recipients of
  service can receive discounts
• Applicants must apply for discounts each year
  (Form 471 application filing window)
• Funding cap each year is 2.25 billion

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Overview

• Application process
• Eligibility
• Technology planning
• Competitive bidding / Form 470
• Calculating discounts
• Funding requests / Form 471
• Application review / Funding commitments
• Starting services / Form 486
• Invoicing USAC / Form 472 or Form 474

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Overview

• Forms and Letters for Applicants
• Technology plan
• Form 470
• Receipt Notification Letter (RNL)
• Form 471
• Receipt Acknowledgment Letter (RAL)
• Funding Commitment Decision Letter (FCDL)
• Form 486
• Form 486 Notification Letter (486NL)
• Form 472 or Form 474
• BEAR Notification Letter Form 472 only
• Quarterly Disbursement Report

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Overview

• Forms and Letters for Providers
• Form 498
• Notification by e-mail
• Form 499-A
• Notification by e-mail or telephone
• Receipt Acknowledgment Letter (RAL)
• Funding Commitment Decision Letter (FCDL)
• Form 473
• Form 486 Notification Letter (486NL)
• Form 472 or Form 474
• BEAR Notification Letter / Invoice Status Report
• Electronic notification

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EligibilityApplicants

• Eligible Entities - Schools
• Must meet the statutory definition of elementary
  or secondary school found in the No Child Left
  Behind Act of 2001.
• Must be a non-profit institutional day or
  residential school, including a public charter
  school, that provides elementary or secondary
  education, as determined under state law.
• Must not be operating as a for-profit business.
• Must not have an endowment exceeding 50 million.

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EligibilityApplicants

• Eligible Entities - Schools
• Pre-kindergarten, Adult Education, Juvenile
  Justice students/facilities may be eligible.
• Must provide elementary or secondary education as
  determined under state law.
• USAC requests updated eligibility information
  from state departments of education every two
  years.

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Eligible ServicesBoth

• Priority 1 funded first
• Telecommunications Services
• Basic telephone service wireline or wireless
  phone service (local, cellular/PCS, and/or long
  distance)
• Voice mail
• Transmission services (T-1, DSL)
• Internet Access
• Basic conduit access to the Internet

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Eligible ServicesBoth

• Priority 2
• Internal Connections (switches, hubs, routers,
  wiring)
• Basic Maintenance on Internal Connections
• Priority 1 funded first, then Priority 2 begins
  with neediest applicants (90 first, then 89,
  88, etc.).
• Internal Connections funded in only two out of
  five funding years.

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EligibilityApplicants

• Educational Purposes
• Activities that occur on library or school
  property are presumed to be integral, immediate,
  and proximate to the education of students or the
  provision of library services to library patrons
  and therefore qualify as educational purposes.
• Customary work activities of employees of a
  school or library are presumed to fall under the
  definition of education purposes.

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EligibilityApplicants

• Examples of Non-instructional Facilities (NIFs)
  that can receive Priority 1 services

• SCHOOLS
• Administrative buildings
• School bus barns and garages
• Cafeteria offices
• Facilities associated with athletic activities

• LIBRARIES
• Administrative buildings
• Bookmobile garages
• Interlibrary loan facilities
• Library technology centers

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EligibilityApplicants

• Educational Purposes Priority 1
• Wireless Telecommunications Services used offsite
  may be eligible. For example,
• School bus drivers delivering children to and
  from school
• Library staff providing library services on a
  librarys mobile library unit van
• Teachers or other school staff accompanying
  students on a field trip or sporting event.

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EligibilityApplicants

• Educational Purposes Priority 2
• Priority 2 services to NIFs are NOT eligible
  unless those internal connections are essential
  for the effective transport of information to an
  instructional building of a school or to a
  non-administrative building of a library.

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EligibilityService Providers

• Providers of Telecommunications Services must be
  authorized as Telecommunications Carriers
• Must contribute to the Universal Service Fund, if
  applicable.
• Must provide telecommunications services on a
  common carriage basis to be deemed a
  Telecommunications Carrier.

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Technology PlanningApplicants

• Technology Plans
• Not required for basic telephone service
• Must be written before Form 470 filing
• Must be approved by a certified approver before
  the Form 486 is filed or discounted services
  start, whichever is earlier
• Must cover all 12 months (or all months of
  service)
• Must cover five specific elements

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Technology PlanningApplicants

• Technology Plans
• Must cover five specific elements
• Goals / Strategies for using technology
• Professional development
• Needs assessment
• Sufficient budget
• Evaluation process

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Technology PlanningApplicant Dos and Donts

• DO write your technology plan before submitting
  your Form 470.
• DO make sure your technology plan covers and is
  approved for the entire period (usually 12
  months) that discounted services will be
  delivered.
• DO make sure that your technology plan approver
  is certified by USAC.
• DO verify that your certified approval is dated
  before services begin and before your Form 486 is
  filed.
• DO verify that your plan contains all five
  required elements.

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Technology PlanningApplicant Tips

• Use each required area as a heading in your plan
  and address that area under the heading.
• PRINT A COPY of your certified approval for your
  records.
• Make sure your technology plan is approved for
  the entire period (usually 12 months) that
  discounted services will be delivered.
• Prepare a technology plan if any of your services
  fall outside of basic telephone service (such as
  Centrex, PBX, T-1).

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Competitive Bidding / 470Applicants

• Filing Form 470 opens a competitive bidding
  process.
• Can also issue a Request for Proposals (RFP).
• Applicants are responsible for ensuring an open
  and fair process and selecting the most
  cost-effective provider of the desired services.

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Calculating DiscountsApplicants

• Discounts are calculated using
• Percentage of students eligible for National
  School Lunch Program (NSLP)
• Urban or rural status of county in which school
  or library is located (from web site)
• These two pieces of information are carried into
  the Discount Matrix

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Calculating DiscountsApplicants
Discount Matrix
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Calculating DiscountsApplicants

• Calculation for individual school
• Percentage of students eligible for NSLP for
  individual school
• Urban/Rural status
• Find discount from Discount Matrix

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Calculating DiscountsApplicants

• Calculation for school district
• Determine discount for each individual school in
  the school district
• Calculate the weighted average of the discounts
  for all schools in the district
• Discounts of individual schools with more
  students will be weighted more heavily

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Calculating DiscountsApplicants

• Calculation for library system
• Determine discount for each individual
  outlet/branch in the library system
• Calculate the simple average of the discounts for
  all outlets/branches in the library system

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