How to Request Discounted Bills for FY 2015
June 4, 2015
E-rate rules require vendors to provide applicants with the choice of receiving discounted bills from their vendors (called the SPI process) or paying their bills in full each month and then obtaining reimbursement using the BEAR Form 472. Applicants may choose a different discount/reimbursement method for each FRN, but once the choice has been made and either a service provider invoice or BEAR invoice has been submitted to USAC for payment, that method of discounting must be continued for the remainder of the funding year.
For applicants that would like discounted bills, most companies require applicants to formally request such discounts each year. Although discounted bills cannot begin until the applicant receives their Funding Commitment Decision Letter (FCDL), files their Form 486, and the service provider receives a copy of the Form 486 approval letter from USAC, applicants can and should submit their requests for discounted bills to each company as soon as possible so discounted billing can begin as early as possible in the funding year. Please note that Verizon Wireless requires requests for discounted bills to be submitted before June 12!
Each company has different requirements for requesting discounted bills. Some companies just require an e-mail or phone call. Other companies require you to complete an online form or paper form specifying which account numbers should be discounted. In order to make that process as easy as possible, I’ve compiled below a list of the most-used vendors in PA and the method to request discounted bills for that company. If there are any I’ve missed, please let me know and I’ll continue to expand the list and post it to the PA E-rate website. Where I have copies of vendors’ forms, I’ve attached them to this message.
Don’t forget, if you want discounted bills, file the Form 486 immediately after you receive your FCDL! Please let me know if you have any questions.
| Vendor | Discounted Bills Process |
| Affiniti/Last Mile (formerly Sting) | E-mail Jen Tobias at jennifer.tobias@affiniti.com. |
| AT&T | Upon receipt of your Funding Commitment Decision Letter, AT&T will send an email that includes a hyperlink to submit a GRID that you will complete and return to erate.legt@att.com. |
| AT&T Mobility | Company will send e-mail after you have been funded with a form to be completed if you would like discounted bills. You also may contact them directly for a copy of the form at (866) 829-8184 or NECOEMobility@att.com. |
| Broadview Networks | E-mail Samson Wong at SWong@BroadViewNet.com. |
| Century Link (Embarq) | Company will send e-mail after you’ve been funded with a form to be completed if you would like discounted bills. You also may contact them directly for a copy of the form at erate@centurylink.com. |
| Comcast | A copy of Comcast’s 2015 form also is attached to this message. E-mail completed form to: Pam Ervin at Pamela_Ervin@cable.comcast.com. Pam can also be reached at: (215) 286-1654. |
| Consolidated Communications | E-mail Stephanie Sapp at Stephanie.Sapp@consolidated.com. |
| Earthlink Business (formerly One Communications) | Call Susan Walters at (616) 988-7341 or swalters@onecommunications.com to request discounted billing. |
| Frontier (Commonwealth and CTSI) | Complete the online form at: http://www.frontier.com/discountprograms/ERate. Ignore the auto reply that asks for copies of your Item 21 attachments (they no longer exist). |
| Ironton Telephone Company | E-mail Patricia Stewart at pstewart@ironton.com. |
| Level 3 | Contact Amy Ban at 720-888-5990/amy.ban@level3.com. |
| One Communications | Contact Susan Walters at swalters@onecommunications.com. |
| PenTeleData | E-mail edusales@corp.ptd.net. |
| Service Electric Telephone Company | E-mail Patricia Stewart at pstewart@ironton.com. |
| Sprint/Nextel | E-mail Christina Halley at Christina.Halley@sprint.com. |
| Sunesys | E-mail Walt Tustin at WTustin@sunesys.com. |
| Verizon | Verizon is developing a new Discount Request Grid that will be required, but it is not yet available. To receive a copy of the Grid when it is released, call Verizon’s E-rate Office at 1-800-547-5474. |
| Verizon Wireless | Deadline: June 12! Company should have sent an e-mail containing a personalized PIN number to be used on the website http://apps.vzwshop.com/erate/. If no e-mail was received, contact VW at ERATE@VERIZONWIRELESS.COM or 866-221-4123. |
| Verizon Business/Verizon Select Services | E-mail Jeannine Tabb at Jeannine.tabb@verizon.com to request their 1-page Discount Request Form. |
| Windstream | Company will send e-mail asking if you would like discounted bills. You also may contact them directly at e-rate@windstream.com or 402-436-4466. |
| XO Communications | Call Jamie E. Sontany at 615-777-7763 to request discounted bills. |
– 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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