On August 8, 2017, the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) released a Notice of Inquiry assessing the “availability of advanced telecommunications capability to all Americans (including, in particular, elementary and secondary schools and classrooms.)” Section 706 of the 1996 Telecommunications Act requires the FCC to release an annual report of the current state of broadband deployment. Specific to the E-rate program the FCC is seeking comment on:
- Using FCC Form 471 data for E-rate funding to calculate deployment data for schools. Should the Commission continue to also rely on third-party data sources in addition to, or instead of, the FCC Form 471 data? Are there other data sources we should consider?
- The current state of deployment of advanced telecommunications capability to schools and classrooms. We also seek comment on what level of broadband capacity schools need from their networks to effectively meet their educational needs. Has the demand for this capacity changed in recent years? If so, when and how?‚Äã‚Äã
‚ÄãComment Date: September 7, 2017
Reply Comment Date: September 22, 2017
