Urgent Notice: Year 9 PEPPM and DGS E-rate FRNs
Message Posted February 13, 2006
The SLD has just provided guidance to us regarding State Master Contracts, and PEPPM and DGS purchases for Year 9 are directly impacted. If you have listed or intend to list any such FRNs on your Year 9 Form 471s - READ THIS E-MAIL CAREFULLY.
DGS
When the State DGS 5850-04 and 5850-05 contracts were rebid last year, Form 470s were posted. However, those contracts expire July 2006 and although we believe they will be extended, those extensions have not yet been signed between DGS and the vendors and thus THOSE CONTRACTS ARE NOT E-RATE ELIGIBLE FOR YEAR 9.
PEPPM
The State's PEPPM contract expires December 31, 2006 and the new PEPPM contract will begin January 1, 2007. Because any purchases made for E-rate must be based on currently signed contracts, yet no contract exists for January 1, 2007 - June 30, 2007, the SLD has instituted a procedure called State Replacement Contract that must be used on your Year 9 Form 471s if you will be purchasing any services or equipment from PEPPM from January 1, 2007 - June 30, 2007.
For Recurring Services (such as basic maintenance) from PEPPM:
You should file 2 FRNs on the same 471.
FRN # 1 should list the PEPPM information as it was presented in the e-mail of January 26, 2006: http://www.e-ratepa.org/Listserve-Archive/2006/01-26-06.htm which will provide 6 months worth of funding.
FRN #2 should use the same information as FRN #1, with these exceptions:
SPIN: 143999999 (State Replacement SPIN)
Service Start Date: 01/01/2007
Contract Expiration Date: 06/30/2007
Contract Number: SRC 2004 State PEPPM Contract
For Non-Recurring Services (such as equipment purchases) from PEPPM:
You have 3 choices.
1) If you will be purchasing this equipment and it is NOT contingent upon E-rate (thus assuming you'll be purchasing it between July 1, 2006 and December 31, 2006), you should file 1 FRN as was described in the e-mail of January 26, 2006: http://www.e-ratepa.org/Listserve-Archive/2006/01-26-06.htm. Note: If you do this, the equipment MUST be purchased before December 31, 2006.
2) If this purchase IS contingent upon E-rate funding and you will NOT be purchasing it until after January 1, 2007, then you should only file 1 FRN, using the PEPPM information described in the e-mail of January 26, 2006: http://www.e-ratepa.org/Listserve-Archive/2006/01-26-06.htm, with these exceptions:
SPIN: 143999999 (State Replacement SPIN)
Service Start Date: 01/01/2007
Contract Expiration Date: 06/30/2007
Contract Number: SRC 2004 State PEPPM Contract
3) If you truly don't know which half of the funding year you will purchase your PEPPM equipment, you may file 2 FRNs. FRN # 1 should list the PEPPM information as it was presented in the e-mail of January 26, 2006: http://www.e-ratepa.org/Listserve-Archive/2006/01-26-06.htm which will be used from July - December 2006.
FRN #2 should use the same information as FRN #1, with these exceptions:
Item 10: Check that this FRN is a Duplicate FRN, and list the FRN number associated with FRN #1.
SPIN: 143999999 (State Replacement SPIN)
Service Start Date: 01/01/2007
Contract Expiration Date: 06/30/2007
Contract Number: SRC 2004 State PEPPM Contract
Important Notes:
* The SLD prefers that you choose option 1 or 2 so the demand for internal connections is not artificially inflated. However, you are not required to do so. If you choose option 3, the SLD will only fund 1 of the 2 FRNs, and when your application hits PIA review, you will be required to choose which FRN you want to keep and which one you want to cancel. This may sound simple (you'd be inclined to cancel FRN #2 if you were contacted by PIA in March, 2006, right?), but keep in mind that many applicants went through PIA in May 2005 for their Year 8 80% FRNs which still have yet to be funded. Therefore if you want to be 100% safe, you should pick FRN #2 if contacted by PIA.
* If you include a State Replacement Contract FRN, it must go on the same 471 as the matching PEPPM FRN. If you already hit submit, please do another 471, listing both of the affected FRNs on the same 471 and then when the RAL arrives for the original 471, cancel the original FRN.
* If you use the State Replacement Contract FRNs, either for recurring services or for non-recurring services, you will be required to take additional steps after the new PEPPM contract has been signed and after you have received your funding commitment decision letter. Those steps are as follows:
A) You must request a SPIN change (replacing the service provider designation "state replacement contract" with the name of the actual vendor who has been awarded the replacement master contract) by marking up the relevant pages from your Funding Commitment Decision Letter (FCDL).
B) On your FCDL you must indicate:
-- the appropriate Funding Request Number (FRN).
-- the actual service provider name (attach the appropriate page of the contract)
-- the actual service provider's SPIN
-- the state entity's Form 470 Application Number which was filed for the replacement master contract
-- the contract award date (attach the appropriate page of the contract)
-- the service start date
-- the service end date
-- the replacement contract number
-- the ACTUAL expiration date of the replacement contract (attach the appropriate page of the contract)
-- the effective date of the replacement contract
You must SIGN and date the marked up page(s) of the FCDL and return it by mail or express delivery to:
Universal Service Administrative Company
State Replacement Contracts
P.O. Box 300
80 South Jefferson Road
Whippany, NJ 07981.
You will receive notice when the SPIN change has been made. Once you receive notification that the SPIN change has been made, you may submit a Form 486 for this FRN(s) using the replacement master contract information. In subsequent program years when you file a Form 471, you will reference the state entity's Form 470 application number as the establishing Form 470 for this replacement master contract.
I realize this sounds very confusing and I apologize that this information is coming at the 11th hour. The SLD's official State Replacement Guidance can be found at: http://www.universalservice.org/sl/applicants/step04/state-replacement-contracts.aspx. If you have any questions, please let me know. The PEPPM staff also are available for assistance with filing of these FRNs by calling (570) 523-1155 ext. 2144.
-- Julie
Julie Tritt Schell
jtschell@comcast.net
www.e-ratepa.org
(717) 730.7133 (voice)
(717) 730.9060 (fax)
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