The USAC Schools and Libraries Committee held their quarterly board meeting on October 29, 2012. Highlights from the meeting include:
While the Funding Year 2013 Form 471 filing window dates have not been set, it is anticipated the SLD will open the window in early January and the window will close in mid-March.
USAC's estimated 2013 Schools and Libraries operating budget is $51.6 million. This is a slight decrease from the 2012 operating budget. The first quarter $12.4 million programmatic budget was approved by the Committee.
The SLD and FCC are working on additional PQA beneficiary questions tied to competitive bidding and discount rate calculations. It is unclear when the new procedures will be approved by the FCC, but the SLD believes the additional information should not create an undue burden on E-rate applicants.
The Committee approved nine final USAC Internal Audit Division Schools and Libraries Support Mechanism Beneficiary Audit Reports. Seven were compliant and two were deemed generally compliant. The issues surrounding the two generally compliant audits were tied to competitive bidding, multi-year contracts, and inadequate discount calculation.
Note: The information above is not the official minutes from the meeting, but simply notes from a Funds For Learning staff member in attendance. The official minutes for this meeting, as well as minutes from previous meetings, can be found here.
