CATEGORY 2 FILING GUIDE<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n The FY 2025 Category 2 Form 471 Filing Guide is available at:\u00a0Form-471-Filing-Guide-Category-2-FY-2025.pdf<\/a>.\u00a0 The 100-page Guide provides step-by-step screenshots\/instructions and hints\/answers for three different types of funding requests as follows:<\/p>\n\n\n\n Also, there is a section to assist applicants with submitting\/certifying, printing the form, as well as slides to help with any revisions that must be made after the form has been submitted. This section begins on slide 77. For applicants that may wish to copy a previously-created FRN (even one that\u2019s drafted on a different Form 471), help guidance for that feature begins on slide 91.<\/p>\n\n\n\n WHAT\u2019S NEW FOR FY 2025 <\/strong>\u2013 The actual FY 2025 Form is identical to last year. Two policy reminders: 1) Applicants seeking shared equipment are no longer required to deduct a portion of the pre-discount cost related to the NIF usage of that equipment. Equipment being used only by the NIF remains ineligible for Category 2 funding. 2) Beginning in FY 2024, libraries have a Category 2 Form 470 bidding exemption where the total pre-discount price is $3,600 or less per library per funding year. The cost cannot be averaged across a number of libraries and signed contracts are still required prior to filing the Form 471. <\/p>\n\n\n\n HELPFUL HINTS FOR FILING THE CATEGORY 2 FORM 471<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n Be certain to doublecheck that you\u2019re not requesting more Category 2 funding for your district than what is available in your C2 budget.\u00a0 Why?\u00a0 Your application will likely be moved to the end of the PIA review list, and PIA will just make you reduce your funding request anyway.\u00a0 And while this sounds easy to do, it\u2019s not because you will have to explain exactly which component from which FRN Line Item must be removed in order to come in under budget.\u00a0 If a district\u2019s C2 equipment costs exceed the available C2 budget, you have two choices:\u00a0 1) list the amount that is \u201cover budget\u201d as ineligible on the FRN and then explain this in the narrative, or 2) remove components or reduce the cost of the components from an FRN entirely to come in under budget.\u00a0 To see your available FY 2025 budget, go to:\u00a0\u00a0E-rate-C2-Budget-Tool-FY2021-\/8z69-hkn7<\/a>\u00a0and enter your BEN on the right toolbox.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Product licenses are E-rate eligible and should be requested as Internal Connections on the 471. The full cost of a multi-year license may be requested upfront in the year it will be purchased. Under Type of Equipment, select \u201cLicense\u201d instead of Wireless Data Distribution (or other equipment type).<\/p>\n\n\n\n Be careful not to mistaken maintenance services as product licenses. Also, E-rate rules do not permit the requesting of multi-year maintenance services in a single year \u2013 these must be amortized and requested in the funding year for which the service covers. <\/p>\n\n\n\n For structured cabling, try to have your vendor contracts be for a single price, by building \u2013 not broken down by widget. Then just create 1 FRN Line Item in the Form 471. Vendor invoices, therefore, also should have just a single price \u2013 not broken down by widget\/connectors.<\/p>\n\n\n\n If your Category 2 request contains multiple components, you must create a separate FRN Line Item for each component (model), and then show the # of units, and the cost per unit. For example, a common mistake applicants make is to request just a single FRN Line Item for switches, with a single SKU. Then during USAC invoicing, the invoices are denied because the individual components were not listed\/approved on the Form 471. <\/p>\n\n\n\n Firewalls: Only the actual appliance and basic operating software are eligible. Anti-virus, anti-spam, filtering, and DDOS features\/software are not eligible and must be removed or cost-allocated. If it\u2019s a bundled package, your vendor can provide you with the accurate eligibility percentage. Also, High Availability firewalls are not eligible as USAC will only fund a single firewall and HA require 2.<\/p>\n\n\n\n UPSs: Network Cards are not eligible and must be removed from your funding request. Also, don\u2019t forget that only eligible equipment may be connected to the UPSs.<\/p>\n\n\n\n All Category 2 purchases require a signed contract prior to submitting the Form 471. This can be as simple as signing\/dating the vendor contract and including the contract term and any funding contingencies. Before starting your Form 471, upload the signed contract into EPC. Landing Page > Name of District > Contracts > Manage Contracts. The Contract Module Guide can be found at: https:\/\/e-ratepa.org\/?p=35845<\/a>. The PEPPM Contract Module Guide can be found at: https:\/\/e-ratepa.org\/?p=35846<\/a>. <\/p>\n\n\n\n Applicants are no longer required to deduct a portion of the cost of equipment that is shared by a non-instructional facility (NIF). This rule generally applied to a district switch or wireless controller located in an administrative building or data center. Unfortunately, C2 equipment that is solely used by the NIF will continue to be ineligible (for example, WAPs in admin buildings). <\/p>\n\n\n\n Beginning in FY 2024, libraries have a Category 2 Form 470 bidding exemption where the total pre-discount price is $3,600 or less per library per funding year. The cost cannot be averaged across a number of libraries and signed contracts are still required prior to filing the Form 471. For example, if a library system requests C2 support for 3 libraries, the amount of funding for each library must be $3,600 or less to be eligible for this exemption from filing the Form 470. Schools are not included in this exemption.<\/p>\n\n\n\n The Service Start Date must always be July 1, not April 1.\u00a0 Equipment is allowed to be purchased on or after April 1, and vendor invoices also may be dated on or after April 1.\u00a0 But on the Form 471, where it asks for the Service Start Date, leave it populated to be 7\/1\/2025.\u00a0\u00a0Note<\/strong>: The Service Start Date is not the same as the Contract Award Date; the Contract Award Date is what you provide in the Contract Record as the date you signed the contract.\u00a0<\/p>\n\n\n\n Although the form continues to ask which buildings are receiving equipment, you are no longer required to identify specific buildings because the Category 2 budgets are district-wide. So just click \u201call\u201d and move through the form. <\/p>\n\n\n\n Some Category 2 equipment is not fully eligible for E-rate funding and requires a percentage of the base costs to be deducted to arrive at the E-rate eligible pre-discount amount. Here is a list of manufacturers\u2019 sites that provide eligibility percentages for their products: https:\/\/secaerate.net\/Applicant-Resources<\/a>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n If you have any questions as you’re working through your Form 471, please don’t hesitate to e-mail me at\u00a0jtschell@comcast.net.\u00a0<\/p>\n\n\n\n Happy 471 Filing!<\/p>\n\n\n\n — Julie<\/p>\n\n\n\n Julie Tritt Schell You are HERE in the E-rate process:<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n <\/p>\n\n\n
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Pennsylvania E-rate Coordinator
717-730-7133 – o
jtschell@comcast.net
www.e-ratepa.org\u00a0 \u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n\n\n\n<\/figure>\n\n\n\n