Bulletins

Today, the President will travel to Durant, Oklahoma, to announce ConnectHome, a new initiative with communities, the private sector, and federal government to expand high speed broadband to more families across the country. The pilot program is launching in twenty-seven cities and one tribal nation and will initially reach over 275,000 low-income households – and nearly 200,000 children – with the support they need to access the Internet at home. Internet Service Providers, non-profits and the private sector will offer broadband access, technical training, digital literacy programs, and devices for residents in assisted housing units.

E-Rate Central submits these Reply Comments in response to the FCC’s Public Notice released May 21, 2015 (designated DA 15-615) seeking comment on USAC’s proposed Eligible Services List (“ESL”) for Funding Year 2016.

Washington, D.C. (June 18, 2015) – The Federal Communications Commission today took significant steps to modernize its Lifeline program, seeking comment on restructuring the program to better support 21st Century communications while building on existing reforms to continue strengthening protections against waste, fraud and abuse.

In this Public Notice, the Office of Managing Director (OMD) announces that the proposed universal service contribution factor for the third quarter of 2015 will be 0.171 or 17.1 percent.

The Wireline Competition Bureau (Bureau) seeks comment on the attached proposed eligible services list (ESL) for the schools and libraries universal support mechanism (more commonly known as the E-rate program) for funding year 2016. We invite stakeholders to comment on any aspect of the proposed ESL, and particularly welcome comments based on applicants’ and other interested parties’ experience with using the ESLs for recent funding years.

The Universal Service Administrative Company (USAC) hereby submits the federal Universal Service Support Mechanisms fund size and administrative cost projections for the third quarter of calendar year 2015 (3Q2015), in accordance with Section 54.709 of the Federal Communications Commission’s (FCC or Commission) rules.

On April 15, after a multi-year investigation arising from events in 2004-2008, the Chief of the Telecommunications Access Policy Division (TAPD) of the FCC's Wireline Competition Bureau issued an Order denying appeals by an E-rate service provider and four Massachusetts school districts of a USAC decision that found numerous flagrant violations of the E-rate rules in the provider's dealings with the schools. These included violations of the program's competitive bidding and non-discount share rules. The Order found that the provider, Achieve Telecom Network, "devised a scheme to pass through, control, and direct the disbursement of funds... to cover the Schools' non-discount share of the costs of Achieve's services, in violation of the E-rate program rules," and that "as a result of this scheme, Achieve essentially provided 'free services' to the Schools."

Since the dawn of the internet, there's been much talk about the digital divide – the gap between those with access to the internet and those without. But what about the "homework gap"?

Remarks of Commissioner Jessica Rosenworcel Federal Communications Commission Texas Computer Education Association Austin, Texas February 4, 2015.

PRESIDENT OBAMA's domestic agenda, which he announced in his State of the Union address this month, has a lot to like: health care, maternity leave, affordable college. But there was one thing he got wrong. As part of his promise to educate American children for an increasingly competitive world, he vowed to "protect a free and open Internet" and "extend its reach to every classroom and every community."

Washington, D.C. – Broadband deployment in the United States – especially in rural areas – is failing to keep pace with today’s advanced, high-quality voice, data, graphics and video offerings, according to the 2015 Broadband Progress Report adopted today by the Federal Communications Commission.

The Federal Communications Commission (FCC) adopted the E-rate Modernization Order on July 11, 2014. The Order takes major steps to modernize and streamline the E-rate program and focuses on expanding funding for Wi-Fi networks in eligible elementary and secondary schools and libraries across America. In the Second Modernization Order, adopted on Dec. 11, 2014, the FCC took significant additional steps to ensure that the nation’s schools and libraries have access to robust high-speed broadband connections. In an accompanying Order on Reconsideration, the FCC modified its urban/rural definition, effective in funding year 2015, so that an individual school and library will be designated as "urban" if located in an "Urbanized Area" or "Urban Cluster" with a population of 25,000 or more as determined by the U.S. Census Bureau. Any school or library not designated "urban" will be designated as "rural" and would be eligible to receive an additional discount. The Order retains the current rule that any school district or library system must have a majority of schools or libraries in a rural area that meets the new urban/rural definition to qualify for the additional rural discount.

The FCC Form 471 application filing window for Funding Year 2015 will open at noon EST on Wednesday, January 14, 2015 and will close at 11:59 pm EDT on Thursday, March 26, 2015. The filing window will be open for 72 days.

Schools and Libraries Universal Service Support Mechanism - Reserve Funding.