To make it easier for applicants to accurately describe their E-rate funding requests, Funds For Learning® has developed the FY2016 Service Description Guide. This guide is designed to help applicants properly classify the goods and services submitted on their E-rate funding applications.
To qualify for an E-rate discount, applicants must submit detailed information about the goods and services for which they seek support. This helps ensure that E-rate funds are used appropriately. It also provides policy makers with vital feedback about the technology needs of schools and libraries.
For example, a school district could apply for discounts on a leased Wide Area Network using Ethernet-based fiber optic connections. Or a library might request funds for the purchase of a wireless access point and router for its on-campus Wi-Fi connections. In both cases, the specifics of the facilities to be leased or the equipment to be purchased must be listed on the Form 471 application.
Funds For Learning’s FY2016 Service Description Guide graphically steps applicants through the process of categorizing each of their funding request into one of 74 possible service descriptions. The guide is available to download for free here.
NOTE: This article was updated April 1, 2016, with a revised Description Guide that includes descriptions for applications for Category 1 fiber optic networks.
