Year 7 Window Closes - Now What?
- Have you submitted your Item 21 Attachments?
- Was everything you requested in your technology plan?
- Do you have the non-discounted portion of your request in your 2004
budget?
Message Posted February 11, 2004
Congratulations to everyone who successfully submitted and postmarked or
ecertified their Form 471s by midnight February 4, 2004.
The next phase in the funding process is for the SLD to review the 36,000+
applications that were filed in the window, to determine if they have
complied
with all program rules and deserve funding. Listed below are the next steps
that you should review.
1) ITEM 21 ATTACHMENTS: If you haven't done so already, don't forget to
submit your Item 21 attachments that provide information (bills, contracts,
etc) to support each funding request. Attachments were not
required to be postmarked within the window, although the SLD cannot review
your application until these are submitted. My advice is to fax them to the
SLD per my previous message.
2) PROBLEM RESOLUTION FOR PAPER FILERS: If you submitted an application via
mail, and they have questions during data-entry, you may receive a call from
the Problem Resolution Team. If you filed online, you have passed the
minimum processing standards and won't be receiving calls from the Problem
Resolution Team.
3) RECEIPT ACKNOLEDGEMENT LETTER REVIEW: For each 471 submitted, you will
be receiving a pink envelope containing your Receipt Acknowledgment Letter
("RAL"). The RAL acknowledges receipt of the application and summarizes
each of your funding requests. REVIEW THIS DATA PROMPTLY. If the
summarized data is accurate, no applicant action is required. If errors are
found, there are limited circumstances whereby you can have your application
corrected -- and only 3 weeks to do it. They are:
-- SPIN correction (not an outright SPIN change)
-- Block 1 contact information
-- Unbundling of requests – for example, if you forgot to separate Verizon
and Sprint charges in a funding request.
-- Discount percentage (reduction)
-- Funding amount (reduction)
Unfortunately, you cannot increase your request... you can only decrease or
cancel your request.
To make a correction, copy the first and last page of the RAL, cross out the
incorrect
information and write in the correct information beside it (or write CANCEL
next to the FRN). Then fax to the SLD per the instructions on the RAL.
4) PROGRAM INTEGRITY ASSURANCE REVIEW: This is a detailed application
review conducted by PIA staff in Whippany, New Jersey. Inquires from PIA
reviewers (identified by direct telephone numbers with a 973 area code)
generally involve requests for clarification and/or additional documentation
on product or applicant eligibility, discount rate calculations, contract
status, etc. These are serious inquires that must be addressed in a timely
fashion. PIA inquiries typically provide 7-day deadlines for response,
although extensions may be granted upon request. PIA review is often a
multi-step process. A reviewer may request additional data once he (or a
higher-level review team) has reviewed an initial response, or may initiate
a second request on an entirely different application issue.
5) SELECTIVE OR ITEM 25 REVIEWS: Special reviews are conducted by PIA
under certain circumstances deemed questionable by the SLD. The "Item 25"
designation refers to the Form 471 certification that the applicant has
"...secured access to all the resources....necessary to make effective use
of the services purchased as well as to pay the undiscounted charges for
eligible services."
In our experience, such reviews are most often triggered by unusually large
requests (relative to an applicant's size), the use of certain service
providers, or a previous bad history with the E-rate program. Selective
reviews typically begin with a faxed request (4-5 pages for a "mini-Item 25"
or 17 pages for a full Item 25 review) for
additional information such as the original RFP, all bid responses, the
technology plan on which the 470 request was based, and/or a copy of your
2004 budget showing that you have the funding to pay for your portion of the
service. PLEASE MAKE CERTAIN YOU HAVE ALL OF THESE DOCUMENTS ON-HAND.
6) FUNDING COMMITMENT DECISION LETTER RECEIPT
After your application has gone through all of these reviews, you'll receive
your Funding Commitment Decision Letter! Although we have no idea when they
will begin to send these letters, a good guess would be May/June. They
usually come in waves that are issued every other week throughout the spring
and summer
(and sometimes fall). Notice will come from the listserve each time a
funding commitment wave is mailed.. and I'll then provide instructions on
what to do at that time.
7) So sit back, review your RAL for accuracy, submit your Item 21
attachments if you haven't already done so, make sure your technology plan
is up to date, make sure that your 2004 budget contains the non-discounted
portion of the cost of the service, and wait for PIA to contact you! The
next form to submit will be the Form 486, and you can't file that until
after you receive your funding commitment decision letter. I'll explain
more when that time comes.
Please let me know if you have any questions!
Julie Tritt Schell
jtschell@comcast.net
(717) 730.7133 (voice)
(717) 730.9060 (fax)
| 
Back to 2004 Archives Main