E-rate Where to Start

Step 1 – Understand how important E-rate is to the State of Mississippi $636,158,277 committed since the program started in 1998 For 2015, $62 million was requested for $75 million in pre-discount services So far, $45 million has been committed for 2015

Step 2 – Understand what E-rate is all about Established by Congress, Directed by the FCC, Managed by USAC Provides funding for specific services Internet Access WAN circuits and WAN equipment Internal Connections (LAN equipment and cabling) Maintenance of Internal Connections Managed Wi-Fi Voice – POTS, LD, Cell Service, being phased out

Step 3 – Understand what E-rate will fund To know what e-rate will fund you must follow the Eligible Service List (ESL) Handout – List of all eligible services ESL Changes every year http://www.usac.org/sl/applicants/beforeyoubegin/eligible- services-list.aspx IF it not listed on the ESL as eligible, then the assumption is that it is not eligible

Step 4 – Understand how services are categorized? Category 1 (C1) Funded first with remaining dollars going to C2 Internet Access, WAN circuits/equipment, Voice Category 2 (C2) Funded with remaining dollars after C1 LAN equipment, cabling, fiber between buildings, maintenance of LAN equipment, Wi-Fi, managed Wi-Fi. Each school has a C2 budget based upon $150 per student for a 5 year cycle

Step 5 – Understand how you get your E-rate dollars It is a discount program, not a grant program You must receive the services to receive the funding You can receive your discounts on your invoice You simply pay your non-discount amount Service Provider files a form to have USAC pay them directly for your discounted amount You can pay in full and receive a reimbursement After paying for services in full, you will file a form and USAC will send a deposit directly into your district bank account

Step 6 – Understand what Forms are required by E-rate Form 470 – is part of the procurement to establish a contract Form 471 – is your request for funding Form 486 – you have been funded and services have begun Form 472 – BEAR, filed by you to get a reimbursement Check Form 498 – allows USAC to send a check directly to your bank Form 500 – to return unused funding Form 474 – filed by Service Providers to have discounted amount paid to them directly (SPI method)

Step 7 – Understand the Process: Cookies Crisco Vanilla GSugar BSugar Eggs Flour Chips Bake

Step 7 – Understand the Process: E-rate ESL 470 Contract 471 Review Process FCDL 486 BEARs SPIs

Ah, the E-rate Process What are your needs? Of those needs, which ones will e-rate fund? Do you have a contract to purchase services? How do you request e-rate funding? Who approves the funding? How do they inform you of your funding? Once funded, how do you start the services and notify USAC? How do you get your discounts?

What are your needs? Check with your schools to identify their needs More Bandwidth? Expanded Wi-Fi? More Laptops? Check with your business manager to see what your Technology Budget looks like Don’t go where you budget can’t take you Check with your Super to see what his or her goals are in relation to what your schools need What are the Super’s priorities – more Wi-Fi, more internet?

Of those needs, which ones will e-rate fund? More Bandwidth More Internet? Increased circuit speeds, then verify the speeds are allowable under your contract and that the contract covers next year. Are these services e-rate eligible? Check the ESL

Of those needs, which ones will e-rate fund? Expanded Wi-Fi Where are my weak spots? Will my internet access support more devices? Do I have any remaining Category 2 Budget to spend on Wi-Fi? Are these services e-rate eligible? Check the ESL

Of those needs, which ones will e-rate fund? Laptops Are these services e-rate eligible? Check the ESL

Do you have a contract to purchase services? If you are using one of the ITS State Master Contracts (SMCs) then you simply cite the State’s 470 and use the contract. If you are using your own contract then verify it is still valid for next year. If not, and you do not want to use one of the SMCs, then you must perform your own procurement to establish an E-rate Eligible Contract by posting your own Form 470.

How will you request e-rate funding? Once the Window for filing Form 471s opens you will be able to file a Form 471 requesting discounts for e-rate eligible services. The Window is usually open for approximately 60 - 75 days. After you have submitted and certified your Form 471, it will be reviewed by USAC and they will contact you if they have any questions. Always answer their questions, and don’t argue.

Who approves the funding? USAC hires a contractor through a competitive bid process. Currently the contract is with Solix. Solix has employees that review the application by performing a Program Integrity Assurance (PIA) review. That is why we say “We got a call from PIA asking questions about our application.” Applications go through multiple levels of review which is why we may get the same question more than once. Your application cannot be funded until all questions from PIA have been answered.

How do they inform you of your funding: Once your application has made its way through all levels of PIA review, and all questions have been satisfactorily answered, USAC will issue a notification to you. The USAC notification is call a Funding Commitment Decision Letter (FCDL). You will get the FCDL if you are funded, or if you are denied. USAC no longer sends letters for this notification.

Once funded, how do you start the services. Once you have received your FCDL, you should contact your service provider to verify that they too have been notified of your funding. Just like any other purchase you make for your district, your obligation to purchase is not official until you issue a Purchase Order. You can file your 486 after you receive your FCDL.

How do you get your discounts? You, the applicant, have a choice. You can pay for your services in full and then file a BEAR (Billed Entity Applicant Reimbursement). USAC will issue a Reimbursement check deposited directly into your district bank account You can file BEARs monthly, quarterly, annually…. You can inform your SP that you want to be invoiced only for your non-discounted portion and the SP will invoice USAC directly for the discounted portion

Where do you start? Well, find yourself first. On any given day, you may have three funding years to be worried about. So today you have: Funding Year 2015 started July 1, 2015 and ended June 30, 2016 Funding year 2016 (current) started July 1, 2016 and will end June 30, 2017 Funding Year 2017 PROCESS starts now, and the funding year will end June 30, 2018 E-rate is an exercise in Project Management

What is the current status for each funding year? FY2015 Did someone file the 486? Was a BEAR filed to seek reimbursement? Did my service provider file the SPI? If there were remaining unused funds, did someone file a 500 to return dollars? FY2016 What has been funded? Have the services started? Has a 486 been filed? FY2017 What needs to be applied for next year? Do I have a contract that covers next year? Do I have any remaining C2 budget for next year?

You cannot Pay for services to any residential home Include ineligible services in your request unless you perform a cost allocation Accept any type of free service from the vendor – nothing is free Accept a gift from a vendor that exceeds $20 per event or $50 per year

You cannot Transfer equipment before three years Receive discounts for duplicative services Receive discounts for redundant services Receive discounts for backup/spare services

If you want to succeed Then you must respond to PIA Then you must keep up with every little detail of every funding year Then you must attend training sessions such as this one (No excuses) Then you must ask us or somebody if you do not understand

Questions

How do you find out about FY 2015? www.e-ratecentral.com