Schools and Libraries Service Provider Webinar October 5, 2015

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1 Schools and Libraries Service Provider Webinar October 5, 2015 AGENDA 1. Funding Commitments for FY2015 and FY Next Service Provider Webinar Changed to November Invoicing Update 4. Other 5. General Questions Received by MINUTES 1. Funding Commitments for FY2015 and FY2014 For FY2015, USAC is funding all approved requests at all discount levels. Here is a list of the regular funding waves issued since the last call: Wave FCDL Date Amount 015 9/4/2015 $112.6 M 016 9/14/2015 $141.7 M 017 9/18/2015 $154.0 M 018 9/25/2015 $183.5 M /1/2015 $249.6 M For FY2014, USAC is funding approved Priority 1 (Telecommunications Services and Internet Access) requests at all discount levels and denying for cap all Priority 2 (Internal Connections and Basic Maintenance) requests. Here is a list of the regular funding waves issued since the last call: Wave FCDL Date Amount 065 9/16/2015 $ 1.4 M 066 9/23/2015 $ 561 Th /6/2015 $ 501 Th

2 2. Next Service Provider Webinar Changed to November 11 Due to staff travel for the fall applicant training, we have had to move our October and November outreach calls. The service provider webinar for November has been moved to November 11, one week later than the usual time. We apologize for any inconvenience. Our first applicant training was last Friday in Arlington, Virginia. The training went well, and we are looking forward to seeing some of you at one of the next seven training sessions being held around the country. Just as a reminder, if you need help with the E-rate Productivity Center (EPC), there are service provider guides and videos about EPC on the USAC website. You can reach this page by clicking the graphic in the lower left-hand corner of every Schools and Libraries web page. You can also call our Client Service Bureau at (888) for assistance. 3. Invoicing Update Payments for the month of September totaled $173,155, against requests for $202M. In total, 13,912 invoices were processed for 1,676 service providers. This represented 39,832 lines in September with 93 percent being completed within 30 days. There were 2,387 lines in process as of October 5. Invoice rejections In the past month, the most common reasons for invoices being rejected were: Payments cannot be released due to an issue with the service provider s FCC Form 498. The invoice is or appears to be a duplicate. The entire commitment amount was already paid. The billed date was outside of the funding year. The service provider has not filed an FCC Form 473 for the appropriate funding year. Invoice reminders

3 Invoice deadlines and invoice extensions for FY2014. The invoice deadline for FY2014 recurring services is October 28, You may request and receive a single 120-day extension of this deadline if you request the extension on or before October 28. Requests submitted after October 28 will be denied. We strongly encourage you to complete your invoicing as early as possible so that an extension is not necessary. Billed Entity Applicant Reimbursement (BEAR) Forms awaiting your approval must also be approved on or before October 28. Service Provider Annual Certification (SPAC) Forms for FY2014 and FY2015. USAC cannot pay an invoice for a funding year if this annual form has not been filed and processed for that funding year. Banking information. We suggest that you review your FCC Form 498, Service Provider Identification Number and General Contact Information Form, and verify that it has your correct banking information. USAC s payments are made electronically, so it is important that we have the correct information in our files. Note that the FCC Form 498 has two bank account fields so that you can separate BEAR payments and SPI payments into different accounts if you wish. Eligible locations. Eligible services must be used for eligible purposes and delivered to eligible locations, and these locations must have been identified in the Funding Requests section of the FCC Form 471. You should review the amounts featured on your invoice forms to verify that they were delivered to eligible locations. Your invoice reviewer will remove any charges for services delivered to ineligible locations, and this may delay the invoice review as well as future invoices related to that funding request. 4. Other No items. 5. General Questions Received by Q1. My understanding of SIP trunking as a standalone product is that SIP trunking will be considered a low-speed broadband solution dedicated to voice traffic subject to the 20% decrease in eligibility beginning in FY If so, is it correct that when SIP trunking rides a high speed broadband connection, like Internet Access, without using a dedicated virtual channel but using instead COS prioritization, that the service retains its eligibility?

4 A1. If the SIP trunking is dedicated to voice services, it is subject to the 20-percentagepoint-per-year phase down. However, if there is no dedication or segregation for voice traffic, the SIP trunking is not subject to the phase down. Q2. Will there be a Category Two budget tool available soon to determine budget balances or does each entity need to hand calculate this every year? A2. We are working on a short-term solution to give program participants this information for FY2015. For FY2016, this information will be available in the applicant s profile and in the FCC Form 471. Keep in mind that, for FY2016, the budget is recalculated based on the FY2016 student counts. The available Category Two budget for a school or library for FY2016 would be the budget calculated based on the student counts reported on FY2016 FCC Forms 471 minus any funds that were committed for Category Two services for FY2015. Q3. Can you do a quick review of the Service Substitution process? Who files the request? If there is one item on the FRN that needs changed, do we have to hold off on the entire order before this is approved to move forward? A3. Service substitution requests can be filed by the applicant or the service provider. The applicant can submit a service substitution request pertaining to the applicant s specific funding request(s). The service provider can request a global service substitution if a product is being discontinued by the manufacturer or the service provider. A global service substitution for a product must be provided by the manufacturer itself and not a re-seller of the product. If a service substitution submitted by a service provider does not apply globally (i.e., apply to all funding requests), USAC will ask the service provider to provide written consent from the applicant before processing the request. Generally the service substitution process takes about 60 days, assuming the requestor provides prompt responses to any questions from the USAC reviewer. No, it is not necessary to hold off on the entire order to move forward. However, keep in mind that the substituted product may be necessary for delivery, installation, and/or invoicing to be completed successfully.

5 For more information, you can review the Service Substitutions document on the USAC website. Q4. In general, how much time elapses between the time a BEAR payment has been approved by USAC and the time the service provider receives the ACH deposit? A4. It generally takes about two weeks. The notice sent by USAC will include the advice of transfer. Q5. If the service provider and the billed entity (school) have severed their relationship, and the billed entity refuses to sign the service certification form for services already rendered, what reimbursement options are left for the service provider? A5. The service provider will have to bill those costs directly to the applicant. Q6. Is a Windows update service eligible as a caching server? A6. No. REMINDER: Please send your questions for the next Service Provider Webinar by following the instructions outlined on the Service Provider Monthly Webinar webpage of the USAC website. Also, please watch the USAC website for other program updates.