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July 24, 2015
TIP OF THE WEEK: Please respond promptly if you are contacted by USAC as part of its data cleanup effort (see the July 21 Special Edition SL News Brief). This effort will not have any effect on the pace of funding decisions, nor will it change any funding decisions that have already been made.
Commitments for Funding Years 2015 and 2014
Funding Year 2015. USAC will release Funding Year (FY) 2015 Wave 10 Funding Commitment Decision Letters (FCDLs) on July 31. This wave includes commitments for approved requests for all service types and at all discount levels. As of July 24, FY2015 commitments total just under $834 million.
Funding Year 2014. USAC will release Wave 62 FCDLs on July 29. This wave includes commitments for approved Priority 1 (Telecommunications Services and Internet Access) requests at all discount levels. As of July 24, FY2014 commitments total over $2.26 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.
E-rate Productivity Center (EPC) – Update on User Email Addresses
When logging in to an EPC account, users must use the unique email address and the password they chose when they accepted the terms and conditions of their EPC account. A user is either an account administrator or an authorized user set up by the account administrator. Each EPC username (email address) identifies a single individual, and is also associated with a specific applicant, service provider, or consultant.
Have questions about the use of email addresses in EPC? Read our Q&A below:
Q. Why do I use my email address as my username?
A. EPC is set up to recognize and allow access to each user by his or her email address and password.
Q. Can I have two different email addresses in EPC?
A. Yes. For example, if you are a school superintendent who has administrative authority for two unrelated school districts, or a library director who has administrative authority for three different independent libraries, you may want to have different email addresses for the accounts of each of those organizations – especially if each organization applies independently for the E-rate Program.
Q. What happens if I change my email address?
A. If you are now working for a different organization and you have a new email address as a result, you must use your new email address so that you can have access to the account for the new organization. The first step is for the account administrator at your new organization to set you up as a user in their EPC account. Your previous organization's account administrator should deactivate your old email address if you are no longer authorized to act on behalf of that organization.
Either you or the account administrator can deactivate an email address by calling our Client Service Bureau (CSB) at (888) 203-8100.
Q. What if I want to keep my existing email address but I am now working for a different organization?
A. You must use a new email address to be set up as a user on the new organization's account.
Note that when you accept the terms and conditions of using your account in EPC, you agree that your use of your username and password is specific to the organization where you are set up as a user.
Q. I am a consultant. Do I have to have a separate email address for each of my clients?
A. No. Your email address is associated with the consulting firm where you work. Each of your clients' account administrators can set you up as a user on their own accounts by using the Manage Organization Relationships link in EPC. If account administrators are not sure how to do this, they can watch a short video that explains the process.
Q. Can I allow someone else to log in to my account using my email address and password?
A. No. You agreed as part of the terms and conditions of using EPC that you will not share your account credentials. An email address and password uniquely identifies you as an individual, not as your position in your organization. Remember that in the new system, you will be certifying forms using your username. For example, if your login information is used to certify a form, we will assume you are the individual responsible for that certification.
You (or the account administrator, if you are not in that role) can always create a new user if you want someone else to be able to view or otherwise assist you with your account. However, if that new user is a consultant, use the process described above instead of creating a new user in your account.
Q. Can I use a generic email to establish my account?
In the initial setup of accounts and account administrators, USAC did not set up account administrator accounts for generic email addresses (e.g., library.director@green.library.org or superintendent@redschooldistrict.edu). This is because more than one person could potentially have access to such an account, and we would not be able to determine which user was responsible for a particular action, such as certifying a form. Moreover, someone other than the original user would not have accepted the terms and conditions associated with the use of EPC.
However, we have received feedback that some account administrators utilize more generic email addresses, so we are modifying our process. We will provide an announcement after we complete our process modification. At that time, if you have still not received an account administrator email invitation from USAC, you can create an account administrator with a generic email address by calling CSB at (888) 203-8100. Please note that you may have to periodically affirm your identity when you log in, to ensure that users are still compliant with the terms and conditions.
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