Form 471 Deadline Extended
April 15, 2016
~ Different deadlines for schools/libraries/consortia applicants ~
Due to the challenges some applicants are experiencing with the new EPC system and new Form 471, USAC has decided to extend the Form 471 filing deadline as follows:
– Schools/School District – Thursday, May 26
– Libraries and All Consortia – Thursday, July 21
Because libraries and consortia must rely on the underlying school district’s data, they have been given an extra filing period after the May 26 deadline in order to give these entities enough time to file. USAC expects that libraries and consortia will be able to file within 2-3 weeks of the May 26 deadline, but granted the extra time because a few large state consortia applicants may need it.
With these new deadlines also comes new Form 470 filing deadlines. For schools, the new deadline to file a Form 470 is Thursday, April 28. For libraries and consortia, the new Form 470 filing deadline is Thursday, June 23. Both of these dates are 29 days prior to the new Form 471 deadlines. There is no word yet whether the FCC will also grant “out of window” waiver requests for 471s submitted within 14 days of the deadline. I suspect this special provision may not be extended this year because of the generous extension granted. Therefore, schools should consider May 26 as the final Form 471 deadline!
USAC will begin to review submitted Form 471s next week and funding commitment letters will begin to be mailed immediately after the May 26 deadline. Therefore, I strongly encourage you to file your 471s as soon as possible and not wait until the May 26 deadline so you can receive an early funding commitment!
As you know, there are still some “quirks” in the 471 and USAC is working hard to address them (http://www.usac.org/_res/documents/sl/pdf/tools/epc/EPC-Notes.pdf).
The official USAC extension announcement can be found at: http://www.usac.org/sl/tools/news-briefs/preview.aspx?id=685.
If you have any questions, please don’t hesitate to contact me at jtschell@comcast.net.
– Julie
Julie Tritt Schell
PA E-rate Coordinator
717-730-7133 – o
717-730-9060 – f
jtschell@comcast.net
www.e-ratepa.org
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