E-rate Commentary

by Patrick Burke

Lots of E-rate News Lately. Here’s What’s Still the Same for FY2026.

If you’ve read any E-rate news lately, it probably felt like a lot: a big FCC proposal touching the Children’s Internet Protection Act (CIPA), screen time, consultant fees, and competitive...

by Christopher Odom

Your FY2027 Form 470 Hasn’t Changed Much. Here’s How to Get a Head Start.

Good news for applicants: there are no major changes to the Form 470 or the procurement process for Funding Year 2027. If you filed a Form 470 for FY2026, this...

by Kimberly Beck

FY2026 E-rate Records: What to Keep, and for How Long

If you are ever asked for paperwork during an E-rate review and you can’t produce it, your funding can be reduced or recovered, even when your original application was filed...

Eric Jester, CEMP

Fielding a PIA Question About a Tax or Fee? Start Here.

If you are working through Program Integrity Assurance (PIA) review and a question comes up about a tax, fee, or surcharge, start with this: these charges are often eligible. USAC...

by Todd Lawrence

When Your Enrollment Number Changes, Your Funding Can Too.

Your enrollment number drives your discount percentage, so if it is wrong, the fix can affect your funding before you ever see it. In FY2025, USAC modified enrollment on 3,796...

Micah Rigdon, CEMP

by Micah Rigdon

Preparing for FY2027: Don’t Let Bidding Season Catch You Off Guard.

If you rely on a multi-year contract for your internet or wide-area network services, that agreement gave you years of more affordable connectivity. It also means your needs have probably...

by Michelle Jackson

Happy New Year! FY2026 Has Started. Here’s What to Do Now.

Happy New Year! Not the January kind. As of July 1, Funding Year 2026 is officially underway, and that makes this the real start of the year for E-rate applicants. ...

Cathy Cruzan, CEMP

by Cathy Cruzan

A Connectivity Program, and Why the States Already Decide the Rest

The comments before the Commission run from one pole to the other regarding the draft Notice of Proposed Rulemaking and Further Notice of Proposed Rulemaking. What unites them is a temptation...