The House Commerce Subcommittee on Oversight and Investigations concluded their two year investigation of waste, fraud and abuse within the E-rate program. The Report outlines key recommendations on how to improve the program which could lead to an E-rate legislative reform bill sometime next year.
The House Commerce Subcommittee on Oversight and Investigations concluded their two year investigation of waste, fraud and abuse within the E-rate program. The Report outlines key recommendations on how to improve the program which could lead to an E-rate legislative reform bill sometime next year. The Report finds that "….while E-rate has arguably benefited the nation's children, the program falls far short as an example of efficiency, effectiveness, or integrity…" It is unclear, at this time, what impact the FCC's E-rate rulemaking will have on potential legislation.
Key recommendations:
- Need for more audits
- There needs to be a standard to measure success and have concrete and achievable goals
- Schools need to have an approved technology plan before the competitive bidding process starts
- The FCC and USAC should specify that all internal connections applications that exceed a "reasonable threshold" should be audited and the audit should be paid for by a portion of the applicant's E-rate funding
- Applicants need to hold a greater "stake" in their applications
- Lowering discount threshold
- Tougher criminal penalties on self certifications
