28-DAY WAITING PERIOD The minimum time period an applicant is required to wait after posting the FCC Form 470 before entering into any contract with a service provider
ACCOUNT ADMINISTRATOR An EPC user who can manage users, permissions, and related entities for an organization such as a school, library, service provider, or consulting firm.
ALLOWABLE CONTRACT DATE (ACD) The Allowable Vendor Selection/ Contract Date is the earliest date on which an applicant can sign a contract for contracted services or enter into an arrangement for tariffed (T) or month-to-month (MTM) services with a service provider.
APPLICANT The entity applying for universal service support. In the Schools and Libraries Program the entity is a school, library, consortium, or o ther eligible entity that files program forms.
BILLED ENTITY NUMBER (BEN) A unique number assigned by USAC to each billed entity (school, library, or consortium) that pays for services.
BEAR NOTIFICATION LETTER A BEAR(FCC Form 472) Notification Letter is sent to the service provider and the applicant after a BEAR form has been processed by USAC.
CATEGORY ONE SERVICES Services used to connect broadband or internet to eligible locations, or services that provide the basic conduit access to the internet. Data Transmission Services and Internet Access are Category One services.
CATEGORY TWO SERVICES Internal connections services needed to enable high-speed broadband connectivity and broadband internal connections components. Category Two includes local area networks/ wireless local area networks
(LAN/ wireless LAN), internal connections components, basic maintenance of internal connections components, and managed internal broadband services.
CATEGORY TWO BUDGET Applicants applying for Category Two services in FY2015 or FY2016 will be able to request discounts up to $150 per student pre-discount per school, up to $2.30 per square foot pre-discount per library ($5.00 per square foot for certain urban libraries) over a five-year period. There is a minimum (floor) of $9,200.00 per school or library.
CHILDREN’S INTERNET PROTECTION ACT (CIPA) A law that mandates certain internet safety policy and filtering requirements for recipients of E-rate program discounts for services other than telecommunications services.
COMPETITIVE BIDDING PROCESS The process conducted by an applicant to select a service provider and order products and/or services. This process must be a fair and open competitive procurement.
CONTRACT AWARD DATE (CAD) The date the contract is awarded to the service provider.
ELIGIBLE SERVICES LIST (ESL) An FCC-released annual list of the products and services approved for funding by the FCC under the Schools and Libraries Program.
E-RATE PRODUCTIVITY CENTER (EPC) EPC is the account and application management portal for the Schools and Libraries (E-rate) program. Applicants, consultants, and service providers participating in the E-rate program use this tool to manage program processes and to submit questions.
FCC FORM 470 The Description of Services Requested and Certification Form is an FCC form that schools and libraries complete to request services and establish eligibility.
FCC FORM 473 (SPAC) The Service Provider Annual Certification Form is an FCC form that service providers file annually to certify that they will comply with program rules and guidelines. This must be filed before USAC will pay invoices.
FCC FORM 479 The Certification by Administrative Authority to Billed Entity of Compliance with the Children’s Internet Protection Act Form is an FCC form that consortium members (the administrative authority for CIPA purposes) submit to their consortium leader to certify that they are in compliance with the Children’s Internet Protection Act. After all FCC Forms 479 are collected, the consortium leader can accurately complete the FCC Form 486.
FCC FORM 500 The Funding Commitment Adjustment Request Form is filed by schools and libraries to notify USAC of reductions to or cancellations of approved FRNs and/or changes to reported Service Start Dates or Contract Expiration Dates, to request a service delivery extension for non-recurring services, or to notify USAC of an allowable equipment transfer.
FUNDING REQUEST NUMBER (FRN) A unique number that USAC assigns to each funding request in an FCC Form 471.
FCC FORM 471 The Services Ordered and Certification Form is an FCC form that schools and libraries use to report services ordered and discounts requested for those services.
FCC FORM 472 (BEAR)The Billed Entity Applicant Reimbursement Form is an FCC form that schools and libraries submit to USAC after paying for services in full, to request reimbursement for the discount on those services.
FCC FORM 474 (SPI) The Service Provider Invoice Form is an FCC form that service providers submit to request reimbursement for discounted eligible services already provided to the schools or libraries on their customer bills.
FCC FORM 486 The Receipt of Service Confirmation and Children’s Internet Protection Act Certification Form is an FCC form that schools and libraries file to inform USAC that services have begun, and of their CIPA compliance.
FCC FORM 498 The Service Provider and Billed Entity Identification Number and General Contact Information Form issued to collect contact, remittance, and payment information from service providers and applicants receiving universal service support. Service providers must fill out this form to participate in any of the universal service programs. As of July 1, 2016, applicants who choose the Billed Entity Applicant Reimbursement (BEAR) payment method will need to file this form to receive an ID number (498 ID) for reimbursement payments.
FUNDING COMMITMENT DECISION LETTER (FCDL) A letter that contains USAC’s funding decisions on an applicant’s funding requests.
FUNDING YEAR (FY) The funding year is a time during which program support is being provided. The FY begins July 1 and ends June 30 of the following calendar year.
INTERNET SERVICE PROVIDER (ISP) A company that provides internet access service (also referred to as a service provider).
LETTER OF AGENCY (LOA) A Letter of Agency (LOA) authorizes a consortium leader to apply for program support on behalf of each consortium member or a consultant to conduct specified activities on behalf of an applicant or service provider.
PROGRAM INTEGRITY ASSURANCE (PIA) The compliance review process of FCC Forms 471 that must be completed before funding commitments are made by USAC.
REQUEST FOR PROPOSAL (RFP) A form of solicitation for products or services that provides detailed information regarding those products or services and any additional details necessary for potential bidders to respond. Program applicants may issue RFPs in addition to filing the FCC Form 470.
SERVICE PROVIDER IDENTIFICATION NUMBER (SPIN) A unique number that USAC assigns to each service provider once that service provider has submitted the FCC Form 498 to USAC.
UNIVERSAL SERVICE ADMINISTRATIVE COMPANY (USAC) An independent, not-for- profit corporation created by the FCC in 1997 to administer the four universal service programs which help provide communities across the country with access to affordable telecommunications services.
WIDE AREA NETWORK (WAN) A data* network that provides connections from within an eligible school or library to other locations beyond the school or library. *The voice and video components of a WAN are not eligible for E-rate discounts.
