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Greetings,<br><br>Lorrie Germann has shared some very important, timely updates, which we wanted to pass along to you as well.</div><div><br></div><div>Perhaps most notable of those updates is the FCC's decision to end hotspot lending as an E-Rate eligible service. We have additional information <a href="https://www.oplin.ohio.gov/hotspots">on our website</a>, and we will continue to add updates as that information becomes available.</div><div><br>Best wishes,<br><br>Christine
<br clear="all"></div><div><div dir="ltr" class="gmail_signature" data-smartmail="gmail_signature"><div dir="ltr"><div>--</div><div>Christine Morris (she/her)<br></div><div>Digital Resources Manager<br></div><div>Ohio Public Library Information Network</div><div><a href="mailto:christine@oplin.ohio.gov" target="_blank">christine@oplin.ohio.gov</a></div><div>614-728-5252 (OPLIN Support)</div><div>614-728-0227 (direct)<br></div></div></div></div><br><br><div class="gmail_quote"><div dir="ltr" class="gmail_attr">---------- Forwarded message ---------<br>From: <b class="gmail_sendername" dir="auto">Lorrie Germann</b> <span dir="auto"><e-rate@ohio-k12.help></span><br>Date: Thu, Oct 2, 2025 at 9:29 AM<br>Subject: E-Rate News and Reminders</div><div>
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<span style="font-family:'Calibri',sans-serif">I want to share a couple of E-Rate updates and a reminder to register for training.</span><span style="font-family:'Calibri',sans-serif"></span><br>
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<li style="color:#000000;font-family:Arial,'Helvetica Neue',Helvetica,sans-serif;font-size:15px;line-height:24px;text-align:left;margin-bottom:10px"><span style="font-family:'Calibri',sans-serif"><b>The FCC Ends E-Rate Eligibility for Hotspot and Bus Wi-Fi Services </b>- </span><span style="font-family:'Calibri',sans-serif">At the September 30, 2025, Open Commission Meeting, the FCC <span> </span>voted 2 to 1 to rescind the use of E-Rate funds, ending support for both off-premise Wi-Fi hotspot and Bus Wi-Fi services. In its decision, the Commission clarified that providing Wi-Fi or similar technologies outside of traditional school and library premises does not fall within the scope of the E-Rate program.<span> </span>Based on this decision, the FCC has released an amended FY2025 Eligible Services List, removing Wi-Fi services for school buses and hotspots as eligible services.<span> </span>USAC will now begin to deny all <span> </span>FY2025 funding requests related to these services. </span><span style="font-family:'Calibri',sans-serif"> </span></li>
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<li style="color:#000000;font-family:Arial,'Helvetica Neue',Helvetica,sans-serif;font-size:15px;line-height:24px;text-align:left;margin-bottom:10px"><b><span style="font-family:'Calibri',sans-serif">The FCC seeks comment on the proposed funding year (FY) 2026 Eligible Services List (ESL)</span></b><span style="font-family:'Calibri',sans-serif"><b> </b>- For FY2026, the FCC <span> </span>proposes to modify how eligible software and other remote configuration services are categorized in the ESL.<span> </span><b>This is welcome news indeed!<span> </span><span> </span></b></span>
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<li><span style="font-family:'Calibri',sans-serif">Under current rules, items that include support, such as most equipment license renewals, which allow for remote-based services such as software upgrades and patches, bug fixes, security patches, and online and telephone-based technical assistance, must be requested under Basic Maintenance of Internal Connections (BMIC).<span> </span>For multi-year renewals, which are treated as a multi-year contract, a pro-rata allocation of the cost is required. <span> </span>This means a funding request must be submitted for each funding year on the Form 471 for the annual amount, even when the full multi-year cost is paid to the service provider upfront.<span> </span>This has caused tremendous confusion over the years.<span> </span>To alleviate this confusion, the FCC proposes treating all currently eligible software or remote-based services uniformly, allowing applicants to request it under internal connections with the equipment they support. <b><span> </span>Please plan to attend the upcoming training, where we’ll review all the details.</b></span></li>
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<li style="color:#000000;font-family:Arial,'Helvetica Neue',Helvetica,sans-serif;font-size:15px;line-height:24px;text-align:left;margin-bottom:10px"><b><span style="font-family:'Calibri',sans-serif">Reminder to register for upcoming E-Rate training sessions. </span></b><span style="font-family:'Calibri',sans-serif">Each of the sessions will be repeated to accommodate schedules. </span><span style="font-family:'Calibri',sans-serif">To register, go to <a href="https://www.ohio-k12.help?mailpoet_router&endpoint=track&action=click&data=WyIxMTgwNSIsIjkwZjI3MzQ0ZjU0Y2U1YzM2ODM0YTMxYmVjMzE5YWNkIiwiMjY0IiwiNzczOTFiYzFhOWVhIixmYWxzZV0" style="color:#21759b;text-decoration:underline" target="_blank">https://www.ohio-k12.help/e-rate-support/e-rate-events/</a>. <b>T</b></span><b><span style="font-family:'Calibri',sans-serif">he three training sessions are:</span></b></li>
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<li class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family:'Calibri',sans-serif"><b>Beginners’ (E-Rate 101) </b>session covering the basics of the E-Rate program,</span></li>
<li class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family:'Calibri',sans-serif"><b>Experienced (veteran) applicants</b> to learn about the recent changes and additions to E-Rate,</span></li>
<li class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family:'Calibri',sans-serif"><b>Form 470 application </b>walk-through (appropriate for both beginner and experienced applicants), highlighting any changes to the form, Category 1 and Category 2 bidding best practices, and a step-by-step application walk-through to make the process a little easier.</span></li>
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<li style="color:#000000;font-family:Arial,'Helvetica Neue',Helvetica,sans-serif;font-size:15px;line-height:24px;text-align:left;margin-bottom:10px"><span style="font-family:'Calibri',sans-serif"> <span style="color:#e03e2d"><b>Training for public libraries:</b></span></span><span style="font-family:'Calibri',sans-serif"><span style="color:#e03e2d"><b></b></span></span>
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<li class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family:'Calibri',sans-serif"> </span><span style="font-family:'Calibri',sans-serif">While the sessions listed above will benefit both school and library applicants, I will also conduct sessions geared specifically for public libraries. If you are with a public library, go to <a href="https://www.ohio-k12.help?mailpoet_router&endpoint=track&action=click&data=WyIxMTgwNSIsIjkwZjI3MzQ0ZjU0Y2U1YzM2ODM0YTMxYmVjMzE5YWNkIiwiMjY0IiwiYmQ4YmRkYTJhM2U2IixmYWxzZV0" style="color:#21759b;text-decoration:underline" target="_blank">https://events.library.ohio.gov/calendar/ceohio?cid=15632&t=g&d=0000-00-00&cal=15632&inc=0</a> to register. You will find sessions scheduled for 10/8 (Beginners’), 10/9 (Experienced), 10/14 (Form 470 Cat 1), and 10/16 (Form 470 Cat 2).</span></li>
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<span style="font-family:'Calibri',sans-serif">If you have questions or need additional information, please do not hesitate to contact me.</span><br><br>
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<span style="font-family:'Calibri',sans-serif">Sincerely,</span><br><br>
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<span style="font-family:'Calibri',sans-serif">Lorrie</span><br><br>
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State E-Rate Coordinator<br><span>Ohio Department of Education & Workforce</span><br><span><a href="mailto:lorrie.germann@education.ohio.gov" target="_blank">lorrie.germann@education.ohio.gov</a></span><br><span>740-253-1153</span><br><span style="font-size:12.0pt;line-height:107%;font-family:'Calibri',sans-serif"><a href="https://www.ohio-k12.help?mailpoet_router&endpoint=track&action=click&data=WyIxMTgwNSIsIjkwZjI3MzQ0ZjU0Y2U1YzM2ODM0YTMxYmVjMzE5YWNkIiwiMjY0IiwiNWI2Y2QxMDZkNTk2IixmYWxzZV0" style="color:#21759b;text-decoration:underline" target="_blank">https://www.ohio-k12.help/e-rate-support/</a></span><br>
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