Are you waiting for a 2016 funding commitment decision letter? If so, you are not alone. Most applicants have yet to receive a decision letter from USAC. In fact, the pace of funding decisions is at an all-time low with only $78 million committed. By comparison, 18 times more funding had been committed by July 15, 2014 – almost $1.4 billion more than has been committed so far this year.
When the FCC reformed the E-rate program, a key goal was the timely issuance of funding decision letters. This past week, USAC began notifying stakeholders that a flaw in the EPC system limited USAC from issuing single Form 471 funding decisions to an applicant. Instead, all applications for an organization must be reviewed and approved simultaneously before funding decision letters are issued.
Applicants who have not yet received a funding decision letter should check EPC for PIA inquiries. Also, when speaking with PIA staff, applicants are encouraged to ask that all of their Form 471s be reviewed concurrently.
