Most E-rate Applicants See Benefits, View Wi-Fi as Critical, Find Process Difficult, Consultant Says
Most applicants for FCC E-rate school and library discounts say there are clear benefits, though they find navigating the program and its process cumbersome, said E-rate consultant firm Funds for Learning CEO John Harrington in a filing posted Monday in…
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docket 13-184 on discussions with officials of the FCC Wireline Bureau Telecom Access Policy Division. More than 118,000 school and library sites, 50 million K-12 students and millions of library patrons benefit from E-rate funding, he said. Noting a nationwide survey of applicants, he said 93 percent of respondents believe "Wi-Fi is critical to fulfilling their organization's mission" and 75 percent believe they "have more students and library patrons connected to the internet" directly because of the discounts, but only "33% agree the E-rate is fast, simple and efficient." He said a decline in program participation since 2015 slowed and "steady" participation is forecast for 2018, and while broadband demand has "grown significantly," related E-rate funding stayed "flat." John Wade, CEO of Alabama Supercomputer Authority, which submits E-rate applications on behalf of 137 of 141 school districts in the state, said the "bandwidth needs of the consortium are anticipated to have increased by a factor of 1,335% from year 2012, while spending will have only increased by 25%," according to another Funds for Learning filing.