Commitments for Funding Years 2015 and 2014

Funding Year 2015. On May 21, 2015 USAC will release letters for the first wave of commitments for Funding Year (FY) 2015. Wave 1 will include more than $153 million in commitments for approved requests for all service types and at all discount levels for more than 7,100 applications.

Commitments for the first school and first library to file FY2015 applications are included in this wave.

• First school – FLEXTECH HIGH SCHOOL, Brighton, Michigan
• First library – TOULON PUBLIC LIBRARY DISTRICT, Toulon, Illinois

USAC is actively reviewing FY2015 applications. If Program Integrity Assurance (PIA) contacts you with questions about your application, please respond promptly and completely. Your timely response will facilitate the review of your application and assist us in reaching a decision more quickly.

Funding Year 2014. USAC will also release FY2014 Wave 54 Funding Commitment Decision Letters (FCDLs) on May 20. This wave includes commitments for approved Priority 1 requests (Telecommunications Services and Internet Access) at all discount levels. As of May 15, FY2014 commitments total over $2.21 billion.

On the day the FCDLs are mailed, you can check to see if you have a commitment by using USAC's Automated Search of Commitments tool.

DEADLINE REMINDER: Certify Your FCC Form 471 by May 26

Applicants that submitted their FCC Form 471 online on or before the application filing window closed must certify their form by 11:59 pm EDT on Tuesday, May 26 for the form to be considered in-window.

To check the status of your form:

• Click the Display button in the online FCC Form 471.
• Enter your application number and click Display.
• Check the entry in the top right-hand corner of the form next to the caption Date Certified.
• If the entry in the Date Certified field is on or before April 16, 2015, your form was certified in window. If the entry is N/A rather than a date, certify your form as soon as possible.

We will be sending out an email reminder early next week for each application that was timely filed but has not yet been certified.

• If you receive an email and you have a Personal Identification Number (PIN), you can certify your form online, even if you have already submitted a paper certification.
• If you receive an email and you believe you have already sent USAC a paper certification, you can check the status of your certification by calling the Client Service Bureau at (888) 203-8100.
• If you receive an email and do not have a PIN, print your certification page, sign and date it, make a copy for your records, and fax or mail the signed and dated certification page to USAC.

If you are not sure how to certify your form, you can watch our certification video.

APPLICATION PROCESS: FCC Form 486 and FCC Form 479

After applicants have received an FCDL with a positive funding commitment and services have started for the funding year, they must file an FCC Form 486.

The FCC Form 486 is filed to accomplish the following:

• To notify USAC that services have started and USAC can process invoices (FCC Form 472 and FCC Form 474).  Note that the service provider must also file FCC Form 473, Service Provider Annual Certification Form, for the funding year before USAC can pay invoices.
• To certify that the entities receiving services are covered by approved technology plan(s) – if required – and to provide the name(s) of the technology plan approver(s) that approved those technology plans. Note: Technology plans are not required for FY2015 and subsequent funding years.
• To certify the status of compliance with the Children's Internet Protection Act (CIPA).

In some cases, applicants can file an FCC Form 486 early – that is, before services have started. For the applicant to file early, all of the following must be true:

• The applicant has received an FCDL with a positive funding commitment.
• The applicant has confirmed with the named service provider(s) that the services ordered will start on or before July 31.
• The applicant can accurately make all of the relevant certifications as of the date that the FCC Form 486 is certified.

For members of a consortium or in other situations where the entity filing the FCC Form 486 is not the Administrative Authority for purposes of CIPA, recipients of service may need to file the FCC Form 479, Certification of Administrative Authority to Billed Entity of Compliance with the Children's Internet Protection Act, with the entity that will file the FCC Form 486 on their behalf. In this situation, the FCC Form 479 provides the information necessary for the Billed Entity to complete the appropriate CIPA certification(s) and successfully submit the FCC Form 486.