[OPLINLIST] E-Rate News and Reminders

[Christine Morris]

 Greetings,

Lorrie Germann has shared some very important, timely updates, which we
wanted to pass along to you as well.

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 on
our website <https://www.oplin.ohio.gov/hotspots>, and we will continue to
add updates as that information becomes available.

Best wishes,

Christine
--
Christine Morris (she/her)
Digital Resources Manager
Ohio Public Library Information Network
christine at oplin.ohio.gov
614-728-5252 (OPLIN Support)
614-728-0227 (direct)


---------- Forwarded message ---------
From: Lorrie Germann <e-rate at ohio-k12.help>
Date: Thu, Oct 2, 2025 at 9:29 AM
Subject: E-Rate News and Reminders

Good morning E-Rate Community, and Happy Friday Eve.

I want to share a couple of E-Rate updates and a reminder to register for
training.

   - *The FCC Ends E-Rate Eligibility for Hotspot and Bus Wi-Fi Services *- At
   the September 30, 2025, Open Commission Meeting, the FCC 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. 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. USAC will now begin to deny all FY2025 funding requests
   related to these services.


   - *The FCC seeks comment on the proposed funding year (FY) 2026 Eligible
   Services List (ESL)* - For FY2026, the FCC proposes to modify how
   eligible software and other remote configuration services are categorized
   in the ESL. *This is welcome news indeed! *
      - 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). For multi-year renewals,
      which are treated as a multi-year contract, a pro-rata allocation of the
      cost is required. 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. This has
      caused tremendous confusion over the years. 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. * Please plan
      to attend the upcoming training, where we’ll review all the details.*
   - *Reminder to register for upcoming E-Rate training sessions. *Each of
   the sessions will be repeated to accommodate schedules. To register, go
   to https://www.ohio-k12.help/e-rate-support/e-rate-events/
   <https://www.ohio-k12.help?mailpoet_router&endpoint=track&action=click&data=WyIxMTgwNSIsIjkwZjI3MzQ0ZjU0Y2U1YzM2ODM0YTMxYmVjMzE5YWNkIiwiMjY0IiwiNzczOTFiYzFhOWVhIixmYWxzZV0>.
   *T**he three training sessions are:*


   -
      - *Beginners’ (E-Rate 101) *session covering the basics of the E-Rate
      program,
      - *Experienced (veteran) applicants* to learn about the recent
      changes and additions to E-Rate,
      - *Form 470 application *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.
   - *Training for public libraries:*
      - 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
      https://events.library.ohio.gov/calendar/ceohio?cid=15632&t=g&d=0000-00-00&cal=15632&inc=0
      <https://www.ohio-k12.help?mailpoet_router&endpoint=track&action=click&data=WyIxMTgwNSIsIjkwZjI3MzQ0ZjU0Y2U1YzM2ODM0YTMxYmVjMzE5YWNkIiwiMjY0IiwiYmQ4YmRkYTJhM2U2IixmYWxzZV0>
      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).

If you have questions or need additional information, please do not
hesitate to contact me.

Sincerely,

Lorrie

*Lorrie Germann*
State E-Rate Coordinator
Ohio Department of Education & Workforce
lorrie.germann at education.ohio.gov
740-253-1153
https://www.ohio-k12.help/e-rate-support/
<https://www.ohio-k12.help?mailpoet_router&endpoint=track&action=click&data=WyIxMTgwNSIsIjkwZjI3MzQ0ZjU0Y2U1YzM2ODM0YTMxYmVjMzE5YWNkIiwiMjY0IiwiNWI2Y2QxMDZkNTk2IixmYWxzZV0>
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