SLK News

Just a reminder if your library plans to apply for E-rate discounts on telecommunications/internet access for the year beginning July 1, 2013:

Starting with Funding Year (FY) 2011, schools and libraries applying for Priority 2 services (Internal Connections and Basic Maintenance) must prepare a technology plan. Before FY2011, technology plans were required for all eligible services other than basic telephone service.

http://www.usac.org/sl/applicants/step01/default.aspx

What are priority 2 services?

http://www.usac.org/sl/applicants/beforeyoubegin/eligible-services/default.aspx

Unless you intend to acquire connections that will reside internally within your facility, in general, most library applications are entirely priority 1 service, and no Technology Plan is required.

The FY2013 application filing window for the FCC Form 471 opens at 11:00 am CST on Wednesday, December 12, 2012, and will close at 10:59 pm CDT on Thursday, March 14, 2013. The window will be open for 93 days.

FY2013 Begins July 1, 2013 and Ends June 30, 2014

If you are just starting the application process, you should first review the FCC Form 470 and Instructions and the FCC Form 471 and Instructions. You can find these forms and instructions on the Forms page of the USAC website. You should also review the FY2013 Eligible Services List to verify that the services you want to request are eligible for discounts.

For helpful tips, reminders, and more information, read the full Special Edition News Brief.

The following news item has been released by the Universal Service Administrative Corporation, which manages the E-Rate program of telecommunications and Internet discounts for public libraries and K-12 schools:

FY2013 Window Dates Announced

The FY2013 application filing window for the FCC Form 471 will open at noon EST on Wednesday, December 12, 2012 and close at 11:59 pm EDT on Thursday, March 14, 2013. The window will be open for 93 days.

FY2013 Begins July 1, 2013 and Ends June 30, 2014

If you are just starting the application process, you should first review the FCC Form 470 and Instructions and the FCC Form 471 and Instructions. You can find these forms and instructions on the Forms page of the USAC website. You should also review the FY2013 Eligible Services List to verify that the services you want to request are eligible for discounts.

For helpful tips, reminders, and more information, read the full Special Edition News Brief.

The following news item has been posted to the website of the Universal Service Administrative Corporation, which manages the E-Rate program of telecommunications and Internet discounts for public libraries and K-12 schools:

11/2/2012– FCC Form 486 and FY2011 Recurring Services Invoice Deadlines Extended to Jan. 28, 2013

Due to the impact of Hurricane Sandy, USAC has extended the deadlines for FCC Form 486 and Funding Year 2011 recurring services invoice submissions until January 28, 2013. USAC will make this change for all participants and participants will not need to request this change individually.

The FCC Form 486 deadline for Funding Year 2012 FRNs has been moved to January 28, 2013. Any FCC Form 486 with a deadline up to that date will now be due on January 28, 2013, thus giving additional time to submit forms that may have missed the October deadline.

Additionally, recurring services delivered for Funding Year 2011 FRNs will now have an extended deadline until January 28, 2013. This is the same deadline as non-recurring services, making all invoices for Funding Year 2011 FRNs due at the same time.

We continue to monitor federal disaster declarations, and will allow extra time for applicants in the areas designated for relief to comply with various deadlines, including responding to PIA, and other program requirements. As usual, for those outside the federally declared disaster areas, if additional time to respond to PIA requests is needed, please do not hesitate to contact your reviewer and request such.

We will continue to post any new information to this website as necessary.

–NOTE: Any library which has filed or will file for an extension should double check the FRN extension table (http://www.sl.universalservice.org/utilities/FRN_CurFundExt.asp) to make sure you see the requested extensions listed.

E-rate contracting firm USAC is in the process of migrating their IT systems to in-house staff instead of using outside contractors, which has caused some technical issues with some of their letters to applicants and service providers.  The following letters were issued late or issued in duplicate as a result:

Reissued Form 486 Notification Letters:

Although applicants have been receiving timely, accurate Form 486 Notification Letters, their service providers have not.  This has resulted in many applicants not being able to receive discounted bills.  The technical issue has been solved; however, in order to make sure that applicant and service provider notifications are consistent with respect to issuance dates, the SLD has reissued Form 486 Notification Letters to all applicants and service providers.  No action is required on the part of applicants — just file the letter with your FY 2012 E-rate documentation.

Delayed Issuance of Quarterly Disbursement Reports:

After the end of each calendar quarter, USAC issues a Quarterly Disbursement Report that details all invoicing activity, BEAR Forms and SPI Forms, processed during that quarter for all funding years. This report allows you to track all of the invoicing activity related to your Billed Entity Number (BEN).  For those of you with invoicing activity for the 2nd quarter period (April – June), you should have received your 2nd quarter QDR around the first week in July.  Instead, those QDRs were mailed last week, with a June 30, 2013 date.  At this time, USAC doesn’t know when the 3rd quarter QDRs (July – Sept) will be issued.

If you have any questions about these delayed or duplicate letters, please don’t hesitate to contact me at jeff.hixon@library.ks.gov.

Public libraries whose circuits provided by Kan-ed are being disconnected (and who are considering an E-rate application for the 7/1/13 – 6/30 2014 funding year will want to take note of the information in Tips for Transitioning: Considerations and Suggestions for Establishing Services, Contracts & RFPs.

This 3 page Word document was adapted from material at www.e-ratepa.org by Melinda Stanley, State Education Technology Coordinator for the Kansas State Department of Education, with additional input from Kan-ed Executive Director Jerry Huff and from the State Library.

Find a link to read or download on our E-Rate Information and Resources Page http://www.kslib.info/librarians/grants-and-funding/e-rate-information-and-resources.html.

Don’t forget to sign up for this year’s E-rate Training Seminars offered by Kan-ed, during the week of October 22-26:

http://statelibrary.mykansaslibrary.org/?p=11353

In order for a new circuit to be eligible for funding through the e-rate program, you must file a Form 470 with the Schools and Library Division for competitive bidding for the new circuit.  The Form 470 must be posted for a minimum of 28 days.  After the 470 has been posted for 28 days, you may then make an award to the winning bidder.  This Form 470 filing would be for the e-rate year beginning July 1, 2013.  A new circuit that you would place into service now will not be eligible for e-rate funding for the current e-rate year that is for the time period of July 1, 2012 to June 30, 2013.

In most circumstances it is also helpful to you to have contracts for your circuits to match up with e-rate years.  For example, if you were to enter into a contract now for a new circuit, it would be helpful to you in the future if you were to have a contract end date of June 30, 201X.  “X” being some number from 3 to 0.

The reason this reminder is being sent is our concern that Kan-ed members may be replacing their Kan-ed circuit without meeting the requirements of the e-rate program and then entering into a multiyear contract with a provider for a new circuit, and then filing for e-rate funding on that circuit for the next e-rate year.  This new circuit would not be eligible for e-rate funding if you did not file a Form 470 and post it for 28 days.  The only way to correct this mistake is to file a new 470 and rebid the contract.  Depending upon when you might realize this error, you may not be able to meet the filing deadline that will occur sometime next year.  Another problem may be that you may have entered into a multiyear contract for this circuit.  Cancelation of that multiyear contract may cause early termination fees to be incurred.

If you plan to request e-rate funding on any new circuit, please be sure you meet the requirements of the e-rate program.  Should you have questions regarding this process you may call our toll free e-rate hotline at 866-372-8302.

Jerry Huff JD, MCSE

Director of Kan-ed