November 1999 Announcements

Please click on the topic below to view the most recent announcements:

The Schools and Libraries Division (SLD) of the Schools & Libraries (USAC) today released wave twenty of E-rate funding commitment letters notifying applicants that they will be receiving funding for telecommunications, Internet access, and internal connections under the FCC’s universal service program. The latest wave, totaling $75.7 million, brings the cumulative amount for the year to $1.92 billion. Nearly 740 applicants, comprising hundreds of schools and libraries, will receive notification of the funding commitments.

Some E-rate applicants filed Year 2 Form 470 applications for Year 3 services, in order to comply with state or local procurement laws requiring a multi-month competitive bidding process.  A text file has been provided that features information about applicants that filed Form 470 applications for this purpose from June through October, 1999, including the USCN, the applicant name, and the applicant's state.   This file is saved as a delimited text file, which can be opened using a spreadsheet application or imported into a database.

If you filed a Form 470 in Year 2 for new services in Year 3, and your name is not featured on this list, send an E-mail to comments@universalservice.org.

November 10,1999

Dear Clients:

The year 3 window is open!

Today the new FCC Form 471 is available to file on-line. The filing window closes January 19, 2000. I urge applicants to act quickly with respect to FCC Form 470, so that you can select your winning bidder, sign contracts for contractual services, and submit your Form 471 well before January 19, 2000.

Please file both forms electronically. The on-line Form 471 is, in particular, a critical tool for swift and successful processing. This year the electronic Form 471 features new, user-friendly features:

• it is compatible with PC and Mac platforms;

• any browser type at 4.0 and above can be used;

• many of the calculations are now automated.

Please be patient with us, however. Our help screens for this new form are still in process. We know that users will help us in finding quirks and defects. Please tell us of any technical glitches by calling our Client Service Bureau at 888-203-8100; explain in detail the problems that you may be experiencing with our new on-line product. Your clarity will facilitate rapid fixes.

Remember, even as the Form 471 filing window opens today, you will need to have posted requests for services (Form 470) for 28 days before submitting and signing your Form 471. If any needed Forms 470 are not posted by mid-December, applicants will be hard-pressed to meet the January 19, 2000 deadline for in-the-window Form 471 funding requests.

We hope that applicants and service providers alike will continue to benefit from the 28-day posting of Forms 470. Our goal is to facilitate the participation of numerous service providers so that the principle of a competitive marketplace is realized, benefiting not only service providers and their customers, but ultimately the learners in libraries and schools across this country.

Note that the design of these forms has been altered, based on the advice of our Year 3 Task Force, a group of applicants and service providers and those of you who answered our direct call for feedback. Your ideas have received the unanimous support of the Schools & Libraries Committee of the USAC Board. Note that our web site has undergone some redesign, and will continue to evolve, based on the very helpful feedback of our Customer Service Advisory Group, convened in late summer. The inclusion of a web site map, the creation of a step-by-step format for the application process, (and soon for the service provider area), and the expansion of internal links, are just some of the improvements we have launched as we listened to you, our clients. More improvements are coming.

Please read the information on this site. Follow the Form’s instructions. Call the Client Service Bureau as needed. These tools are essential for program compliance and successful participation in the schools and libraries program.

Finally, please accept our gratitude for your wisdom, patience, and commitment to greater access to improved technologies for learning.

Sincerely,

Kate L. Moore
President
Schools and Libraries Division
Universal Service Administrative Company

The Schools and Libraries Division (SLD) announces the opening of the FCC Form 471 filing window for Year 3 (July 1, 2000 - June 30, 2001) on Wednesday, November 10, 1999 at 7:00am EST.

The window will remain open for seventy-one (71) calendar days and will close on January 19, 2000 at 11:59pm EST. All properly completed applications received by the SLD at that time will be treated as if they arrived on the same day. Applications received by the SLD after this date will be treated on a first-come, first-served basis.

Applicants who have completed the FCC Form 470 28-day posting period, who have selected their vendors, and have executed contracts as necessary for contractual services, may begin now to file the FCC Form 471, Services Ordered and Certification Form.

The Year 3 FCC Forms 470 and 471 may be filed online (click the "Apply Online/View Forms" button on the home page) or downloaded. They are also available via mail by calling our Client Service Bureau at 888-203-8100.

The Year 3 Training Agenda has been slightly revised. Click here to view the updated agenda.

The Schools and Libraries Division (SLD) of the Schools & Libraries (USAC) today released wave eighteen of E-rate funding commitment letters, surpassing last year’s totals in issued commitments. The latest wave, totaling $171 million, brings the cumulative amount for the year to $1.74 billion, exceeding last year’s cumulative amount by over $75 million. The Schools and Libraries Division will mail letters to nearly 1250 applicants, confirming funding for Year Two of the program.

Click here to view Wave 18

"This is truly an historic time for the program," said Kate Moore, President of USAC’s Schools and Libraries Division. "The digital divide grows ever narrower as we continue to reach the neediest schools and libraries in the nation. We will continue to work towards our goals in both outreach and program administration, to ensure every eligible entity has an opportunity to participate."

In the previous wave (wave seventeen of Year Two), applicants seeking discounts on internal connections down to the 20% discount level were eligible to be funded for the first time. Beginning in wave seventeen, every eligible school or library that submitted an application within the filing "window" that ended on April 6, 1999 will receive discounts because the $2.25 billion funding cap approved by the FCC supports all such requests. This is particularly significant because in Year One SLD was unable to fund internal connection projects below the 70% discount level.

"The fact that our second year funding reserve exceeds the requirements of the neediest of our nation’s schools, means that funding can continue to be extended to all those who qualify," said Moore. "Our hope from the onset has been that there would be enough for every qualified applicant, but we have had to prioritize according to those with the greatest need. Last week’s announcement means no one will be left out."