File BEARs Now for FY 2022 E-rate Reimbursements

July 11, 2023

Attached: FY 2022 BEAR Statuses as of July 10 2023

Attached: Form 472 BEAR Filing Guide FY 2022

~ FY 2023 BEARs Also May Now Be Submitted ~
~ Invoicing Status of All FY 2022 FRNs Attached ~
~ BEAR Filing Guide Attached ~
~ BEAR Migration Into EPC Delayed ~

The last day to receive FY 2022 recurring services was June 30, 2023 and so now is the time to submit the Form 472 BEAR to USAC for services in which you paid vendor bills in full from July 1, 2022 – June 30, 2023.  How do you know if you need to submit a BEAR?  The easy answer is that if you received discounted bills from your vendor, you do not need to submit a BEAR (your E-rate discounts were applied to your bill).  If you did not receive discounted bills, then you likely will have to file a Form 472 BEAR to collect your reimbursement.  Attached is a list showing the invoicing status of every FY 2022 FRN (including internal connections and FRNs where vendors have already provided discounted bills) so you can get a holistic picture of your FY 2022 funding requests.  Column A shows the invoicing status of the FRN and those highlighted in yellow require your attention and possible action.  All subsequent BEAR reminders with lists will only include FRNs where a BEAR should be submitted.

Deadlines:  The deadline for FY 2022 recurring services BEARs is October 30, 2023 (normally, October 28, but this falls on a weekend this year).  The deadline for FY 2022 non-recurring purchases is January 29, 2024 (again, January 28 falls on a weekend).

Status of BEAR Migration into EPC:  USAC intended to move the Form 472 BEAR from being a separate module when you log into EPC, to a form embedded within the E-rate EPC portal itself.  That migration has been delayed; therefore, applicants should continue to submit BEARs as they always have.  I will update you when the migration date has been established and send an updated Form 472 Filing Guide at that time.

Supply Chain Delays?:  The deadline to receive and install FY 2022 internal connections equipment is September 30, 2023.  If you don’t think you will be able to make this deadline due to supply chain issues, submit a Form 500 now to request additional time.  USAC will grant you an additional 12 months to receive/install the equipment, and the invoice deadline will automatically be extended a full year as well.

FY 2023 Purchases:  Many applicants purchased FY 2023 internal connections equipment after April 1, 2023 and paid for the equipment in full.  Assuming they have received an FCDL, those applicants may now submit BEARs for those purchases as well.  Slide 12 of the attached BEAR Filing Guide shows how to complete the form for these one-time purchases.

BEAR LOG-IN INFORMATION:

  • BEARs (Form 472s) are now filed under the One Portal umbrella which you access at: https://forms.universalservice.org/portal/login and proceed through the multi-factor authentication steps.
  • When you reach the One Portal Dashboard, you should see three links in this order:  EPC, BEAR, ECF.  If you don’t see the Form 472 BEAR link, it means you are not set up with BEAR access credentials.  Simply complete the BEAR Access Template at:  https://www.usac.org/e-rate/resources/forms/bear-form-access/ and then upload it into EPC by creating a Customer Service Case.  USAC will then provide you with BEAR access in a few days.
  • The requirement to enter a BEAR PIN has been removed because you will be logging in under One Portal.  However, whenever you click on the BEAR link, you will still be required to enter your Billed Entity Number (BEN) before seeing the BEAR system.  BENs can be found on the attached spreadsheet.

Form 498 – Direct Deposit Banking Data Form:

  • Before you file the BEAR, you must have an approved Form 498.  The Form 498 provides USAC with the banking information so that your BEAR reimbursements can be directly deposited into your account.
  • You do not need to complete the Form 498 annually.  If your school/library submitted one in a previous year, the online BEAR system already has your banking data on file (see Form 498 section below to determine if your school/library already has an approved 498 on file with USAC).  If you need to change your banking data, you can edit your existing 498 in EPC.  To determine if you have an approved Form 498, log into the Online BEAR System, and if a Form 498 ID doesn’t appear in the form, it means you don’t have an approved 498 on file with USAC.  If you don’t have access to the BEAR System when logging into your One Portal account, and want to see if you have an approved 498, log into EPC > Records > Form 498s > Click on 498 if one is showing to see the Status.  If no 498 is showing, then there isn’t one on file with USAC.
  • If you need to update your 498 Banking Data, log into EPC > Records > Form 498s > Click on the 498 > Related Actions > Modify Form 498.  Also, here is a guide explaining how to update the 498:  http://e-ratepa.org/?p=31938.
  • The Form 498 must be filed in EPC by a “school or library official” (not a consultant).  Note:  After you submit the 498, you must then upload a copy of a voided/cancelled check at https://efile.universalservice.org/ServiceProviderManagement/V1/BankValidation/ or e-mail to: 498bankverification@usac.org.  USAC will then reach out via phone to confirm the application and to be assured that the information you entered on the 498 is accurate.  Next, USAC will issue an approval of your 498 via e-mail to the General Financial Contact.  After receiving that approval, you can THEN submit the BEAR.

A few important Q & A’s:

1) Can I put all of my reimbursement requests on a single BEAR?
A. No, a separate BEAR must be completed for each separate SPIN (vendor). For example, if you have 1 FRN for Comcast and 1 FRN for Crown Castle, you must submit two separate BEARs because they use different SPINs.  (When the BEAR migration is complete, all FRNs can go on a single BEAR.)

2) Am I required to have the service provider approve the BEAR before it’s submitted?
A. No.  Your BEAR will be submitted directly to USAC for processing.

3)  How long will it take for my BEAR reimbursement to arrive?
A.   BEAR reimbursements will be directly deposited to the bank account that was listed on the Form 498 as soon as a few days of BEAR submission.  However, USAC often requests additional information, such as a copy of the vendor invoice(s), as part of an invoice review (common with C2 BEARs).

4)  How will I know when the BEAR reimbursement amount has been deposited into my bank account?
A.  The General Financial Contact and the Remittance Contact listed on your Form 498 will both receive an e-mail containing a statement with the date the reimbursement amount was transferred and the amount.  About two weeks after that, the Form 486 contact will receive a paper (by mail) BEAR Notification Letter that outlines whether the BEAR was approved, denied, or partially paid.

5) I was committed more funding than I actually spent. Can I request reimbursement for the full amount that was originally committed?
A. No. Applicants may only seek reimbursement for the exact amount paid for the service instead of just listing the full funding cap (for example, if you were committed $10,000, but then only spent $6,000, you can only request E-rate reimbursements based on the $6,000).  Please know that USAC has increasingly been requesting copies of invoices when they review the BEARs as proof that you are requesting the accurate amount.

6) I spent more than what was committed on my funding commitment letter (my cap). What should I list on my BEAR — the cap or the actual amount spent?
USAC would like you to complete the BEAR with the actual figures of what you spent for the service, and not just list your funding cap amount. For example, if you spent $10,000, and had a 50% discount, you would list $10,000 in Column 14 and $5,000 in Column 15, even if you were only committed $4,000. The reason is that USAC would like to show how much applicants are actually spending on services and also so they know that you are not just listing the funding commitment amount (the cap), but have actually added up how much was actually spent in each of the 12 months using the actual vendor bills. Unfortunately, they will only reimburse you up to the amount that you were committed.

7) What if I receive my BEAR Remittance Letter and it lists that $0 was approved?
A. This typically means that there was an error made on the BEAR Form and the applicant must correct the error and resubmit to USAC.  There is an explanation on the BEAR explaining what was incorrect to help identify the error.  If you’re still unsure of the error, call CSB at 888-203-8100 and they can give you a more detailed explanation.  The most common denial reason is listing the wrong service start date year.  Note:  If the deadline to invoice has not passed, you can simply resubmit a corrected BEAR – no need to appeal.

8) What if I actually received a slightly different service/equipment than what was originally listed on my Form 471 application?
A. USAC has increased scrutiny of the BEARs to make sure that reimbursement requests are for exactly what services were approved for on the FCDLs.  If you changed services from what you originally listed on your Form 471, you should first seek a “correcting service substitution request” from USAC by using the Service Substitution link in the upper right side of the EPC Landing Page.

9)  What should I do if I didn’t use the equipment and want the C2 funds returned to my C2 budget for use in future years?
A.  File a Form 500 and reduce or cancel the FRN.  The Form 500 must be filed in EPC where you will find the link in the upper right side of the EPC Landing Page.

If you have any questions about the FY 2022 or FY 2023 Invoice Deadlines or completing the BEAR, please contact me at jtschell@comcast.net.

– Julie

Julie Tritt Schell
Pennsylvania E-rate Coordinator
717-730-7133 – o
jtschell@comcast.net
www.e-ratepa.org

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