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E-rate Comments Due on October 18

On July 20th the FCC officially published their Universal Service Funding Notice of Proposed Rulemaking (NPRM) in the Federal Register. The NPRM previously was released on June 14th, 2005.

On July 20th the FCC officially published their Universal Service Funding Notice of Proposed Rulemaking (NPRM) in the Federal Register. The NPRM previously was released on June 14th, 2005.

The NPRM seeks comments on the administration, management and oversight of the Universal Service Fund, commonly referred to as the E-rate program. The FCC is seeking comments on every aspect of the E-rate program. Comments are due 90 days after publication in Federal Register (October 18th, 2005) and reply comments due 150 days after publication in Federal Register (December 15th, 2005).

Following are some areas on which the FCC would like stakeholders to focus in their comments:

  • USAC performance since its inception
  • FCC performance in oversight of USAC
  • Metrics the FCC should use to examine effectiveness of the E-rate program
  • Suggestions to improve and streamline application process
  • Whether the FCC should adopt a streamlined multi-year application process for priority one services
  • Whether the FCC should modify current rules as they pertain to the competitive bidding process
  • Whether the FCC should eliminate or combine certain forms
  • How the disbursement process could be improved
  • How the FCC could continue to deter and detect waste, fraud and abuse in their oversight capacity

The full publication can be viewed on the Federal Register.

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