Bulletins

Pursuant to our procedure for resolving requests for review, requests for waiver, and petitions for reconsideration of decisions related to actions taken by the Universal Service Administrative Company (USAC) that are consistent with precedent (collectively, Requests), the Wireline Competition Bureau (Bureau) grants, dismisses, or denies the following Requests. The deadline for filing petitions for reconsideration or applications for review concerning the disposition of any of these Requests is 30 days from release of this Public Notice.

In this Order, we grant two waivers related to the E-rate program's invoicing rules.First, we waive the requirement in section 54.514(b) that applicants must request an extension prior to the invoice filing deadline as it applies to those applicants for whom the Universal Service Administrative Company (USAC) had not, as of October 31, 2016, issued the FCC Form 498 ID, and who therefore were unable to submit an invoice. We direct USAC to grant these applicants an extension of the invoice filing deadline for 30 days from the release of this Order. Second, we grant a waiver of our rules for several petitioners that properly requested an invoice deadline extension but failed to timely file their invoice filings due to circumstances beyond their control, including USAC's inability to timely process their invoice deadline extension requests.

Pursuant to section 54.507(a) of the Commission’s rules, the Wireline Competition Bureau (Bureau) announces that the E-rate program funding cap for funding year 2017 is $3,990,207,000. The new cap represents a 1.3 percent inflation-adjusted increase in the $3,939,000,000 billion cap from funding year 2016. The Commission began indexing the funding cap to inflation in 2010 to ensure that E-rate program funding keeps pace with the changing broadband and telecommunications needs of schools and libraries.

In this Public Notice, the Office of Managing Director (OMD) announces that the proposed universal service contribution factor for the second quarter of 2017 will be 0.174 or 17.4 percent.

Pursuant to our procedure for resolving requests for review, requests for waiver, and petitions for reconsideration of decisions related to actions taken by the Universal Service Administrative Company (USAC) that are consistent with precedent (collectively, Requests), the Wireline Competition Bureau (Bureau) grants, dismisses, or denies the following Requests. The deadline for filing petitions for reconsideration or applications for review concerning the disposition of any of these Requests is 30 days from release of this Public Notice.

In this Order, the Wireline Competition Bureau, on its own motion, grants two limited waivers of the requirement to comply with certain category of service classification standards established in the funding year 2017 E-rate Eligible Services List (FY 2017 ESL). First, as described below, we waive the obligation to apply the FY 2017 ESL classification standards to connections provided under pre-existing multi-year contracts if doing so would change the eligibility of the connections from Category Two to Category One. Second, for funding year 2017 applications, we waive the requirement to classify connections between different schools and libraries sharing a single building as Category One services. Pursuant to this waiver, applicants may elect to seek Category Two funding for customerowned or -controlled inside wiring that connects different schools and libraries within the same building

On January 18, 2017, FCC staff released a report titled "E-rate Modernization Progress Report." By this Order, and pursuant to our existing delegated authority, including Section 1.113 of the Commission's rules, the undersigned now set aside and rescind the Report. The Report will have no legal or other effect or meaning going forward.

The attached report examines the progress of E‐rate modernization since the adoption of the two major E‐rate Modernization Orders in the second half of 2014.

Pursuant to our procedure for resolving requests for review, requests for waiver, and petitions for reconsideration of decisions related to actions taken by the Universal Service Administrative Company (USAC) that are consistent with precedent (collectively, Requests), the Wireline Competition Bureau (Bureau) grants, dismisses, or denies the following Requests. The deadline for filing petitions for reconsideration or applications for review concerning the disposition of any of these Requests is 30 days from release of this Public Notice.

In this Memorandum Opinion and Order (Order), we deny an application for review(AFR) filed by Net56, Inc. (Net56). Net 56 seeks review of the portion of the Wireline Competition Bureau’s (Bureau) Academia Avance Order affirming a decision of the Universal Service Administrative Company (USAC) seeking to recover funds disbursed from the schools and libraries universal service support program (more commonly known as the E-rate program) to Country Club Hills School District 160 (Country Club Hills) for funding years 2006, 2007, and 2008.

Pursuant to our procedure for resolving requests for review, requests for waiver, and petitions for reconsideration of decisions related to actions taken by the Universal Service Administrative Company (USAC) that are consistent with precedent (collectively, Requests), the Wireline Competition Bureau (Bureau) grants, dismisses, or denies the following Requests. The deadline for filing petitions for reconsideration or applications for review concerning the disposition of any of these Requests is 30 days from release of this Public Notice.

In 2010, the Federal Communications Commission supplemented the E-rate program’s competitive bidding rules by adopting a specific gift rule. Under the gift rule, E-rate eligible schools and libraries (and their personnel) may not solicit or accept gifts or items of value from service providers or prospective service providers, with minimal exceptions. The gift rule applies all year round, not just during the competitive bidding process.