**Federal Communications Commission**

**Washington, DC 20554**

In the Matter of )

)

Request for Review of the )

Decision of the )

Universal Service Administrator by )

)

Salina Independent School District 16 ) File No. SLD-170607

Salina, Oklahoma )

)

Federal-State Joint Board on ) CC Docket No. 96-45

Universal Service )

)

Changes to the Board of Directors of the ) CC Docket No. 97-21

National Exchange Carrier Association, Inc. )

**order**

**Adopted: October 4, 2002 Released: October 7, 2002**

By the Telecommunications Access Policy Division, Wireline Competition
Bureau:

1.  The Telecommunications Access Policy Division has under
    consideration a Request for Review filed by the Salina Independent
    School District 16 (Salina), Salina, Oklahoma, seeking review of a
    decision issued by the Schools and Libraries Division (SLD) of the
    Universal Service Administrative Company (Administrator).[^1] Salina
    seeks review of SLD's denial of a request for discounts for
    telecommunications services under the schools and libraries
    universal service support mechanism.[^2] For the reasons set forth
    below, we grant Salina's appeal and remand its application to SLD
    for further processing.

2.  Under the school and libraries universal service support mechanism,
    eligible schools, libraries, and consortia that include eligible
    schools and libraries, may apply for discounts for eligible
    telecommunications services, Internet access, and internal
    connections.[^3] The Commission's rules provide that, with one
    limited exception for existing, binding contracts, an eligible
    school, library, or consortium that includes eligible schools or
    libraries must seek competitive bids for all services eligible for
    support.[^4] In accordance with the Commission's rules, an applicant
    must file with SLD, for posting to its website, an FCC Form 470
    requesting services.[^5] The applicant must wait 28 days before
    entering into an agreement with a service provider for the requested
    services and submitting an FCC Form 471 requesting support for the
    services ordered by the applicant.[^6] Further, the instructions for
    the FCC Form 471 state that the date of signature on the Block 6
    certification page of the FCC Form 471 "CANNOT be earlier than any
    Allowable Contract Date you cited in Item (17) of any Block 5
    submitted with this application."[^7]

3.  Once the applicant has complied with the Commission's competitive
    bidding requirements and entered into an agreement for eligible
    services, it must file an FCC Form 471 application to notify the
    Administrator of the services that have been ordered, the carrier
    with whom the applicant has entered an agreement, and an estimate of
    funds needed to cover the discounts to be given for eligible
    services.[^8] In Funding Year 2000, applicants could file their FCC
    Forms 471 either by mail or by using the on-line application process
    available on SLD's website to file their FCC Forms 471
    electronically.[^9] Regardless of the method chosen, in Block 6 of
    the FCC Form 471, applicants were required to make certain
    certifications.[^10] Applicants that filed their FCC Forms 471
    electronically had to print out a Block 6 certification page at the
    end of the on-line application filing process and then, after
    signing and dating the certification page, were required to
    separately submit it by mail.[^11]

4.  Salina filed its Funding Year 2000 FCC Form 471 electronically on
    January 13, 2000 (Application Number 170607), including Funding
    Request Number (FRN) 336475, requesting support for
    telecommunications services.[^12] In Block 5, Item 12 of its
    application, Salina listed its establishing FCC Form 470 as
    application number 910150000266771.[^13] In Block 5, Item 23 of its
    application, Salina listed its shared discount percentage as
    81%.[^14] During the application review process SLD changed the
    establishing FCC Form 470 to application number 172230000129842 with
    Salina's consent.[^15] SLD also reclassified FRN 336475 from
    telecommunications services to internal connections due to the
    inclusion of a charge for a Key System battery back-up in the
    request for telecommunications services.[^16] On December 22, 2000,
    SLD issued a Funding Commitment Decision Letter, denying FRN
    336475.[^17] SLD explained that the "funding cap will not provide
    for Internal Connections less than 82% discount to be funded."[^18]

5.  Salina appealed SLD's decision to reclassify Salina's FRN 336475
    from telecommunications services to internal connections.[^19] To
    support its claim, Salina attached, among other things, a copy of
    its FCC Form 471 and its Receipt Acknowledgement Letter dated
    January 24, 2000 as proof that the services it requested were
    telecommunications services, not internal connections.[^20]

6.  On March 14, 2001, SLD issued its decision on Salina's appeal,
    finding that Salina's FCC Form 470 application number
    910150000266771 \-- which was originally listed in Block 5, Item 12
    of Salina's FCC Form 471 \-- was the establishing form for the
    funding request.[^21] SLD also agreed that the category of service
    requested in FRN 336475 should have been categorized as a
    telecommunications service.[^22]

7.  SLD denied Salina's funding request, however, explaining that
    Salina's FCC Form 470 was posted to SLD's website on December 10,
    1999, and the FCC Form 470 Receipt Acknowledgment Letter sent to
    Salina indicated that the earliest date upon which Salina could sign
    and submit its FCC Form 471 was January 7, 2000.[^23] SLD indicated
    that Salina had signed the Block 6 certification page of its FCC
    Form 471 on January 2, 2000.[^24] Thus, SLD concluded that Salina's
    application did not comply with the competitive bidding requirement
    that the FCC Form 470 be posted on the website for 28 days prior to
    signing and submitting the FCC Form 471.

8.  In response, Salina filed the instant Request for Review with the
    Commission.[^25] In its Request for Review, Salina states that SLD
    denied its application on erroneous grounds. Salina's primary
    argument is that SLD erred when it determined that its FCC Form 471
    was filed prior to January 7, 2000.[^26] Salina maintains that its
    FCC Form 471 was submitted online and its Block 6 certification page
    was mailed on January 13, 2000. Salina attached a copy of its United
    States Postal Office Express Mail receipt dated January 13, 2000, as
    proof that its application complied with the competitive bidding
    requirements.[^27] Salina also attached a copy of its electronically
    filed FCC Form 471, noting that the contract award date in Block 5,
    Item 18 is listed as January 10, 2000.[^28]

9.  We have reviewed the record, including Salina's FCC Form 471, and
    conclude that SLD erred in denying FRN 336475. Although Salina's FCC
    Form 471 application, on its face, bears a signature date prior to
    the expiration of the 28-day waiting period, the record demonstrates
    that that the signature date entered by the applicant was erroneous.
    Specifically, when Salina printed out its Block 6 certification for
    mailing to SLD, the actual date of printing was indicated as a
    footer on the bottom of the page; the electronic date stamp on the
    printed page reads January 13, 2000.[^29] However, when the form was
    signed, Salina's representative incorrectly dated the form January
    2, 2000.[^30] The footer on the signature page demonstrates that the
    application was, in fact, signed after the 28-day waiting period.
    Further, Block 5, Item 18 of Salina's FCC Form 471 indicates that
    Salina entered into an agreement with its chosen service provider on
    January 10, 2000, after the 28-day waiting period.[^31] In addition,
    Salina's express mail receipt confirms that its Block 6
    certification page was sent to SLD on January 13, 2000.[^32] Thus,
    the record evidence supports Salina's claim that it did wait the 28
    days required by the Commission's rule before submitting its FCC
    Form 471. Therefore, based on the evidence in the record, we find it
    appropriate to reverse SLD's decision and remand Salina's
    application to SLD for further consideration.

10. ACCORDINGLY, IT IS ORDERED, pursuant to authority delegated under
    sections 0.91, 0.291, and 54.722(a) of the Commission\'s rules, 47
    C.F.R. §§ 0.91, 0.291, and 54.722(a), that the Request for Review
    filed April 11, 2001, by Salina Independent School District 16,
    Salina, Oklahoma, IS GRANTED to the extent provided herein, and
    Salina's application is REMANDED to SLD for further consideration
    consistent with this Order.

    FEDERAL COMMUNICATIONS COMMISSION

    Mark G. Seifert

    Deputy Chief, Telecommunications Access Policy Division

    Wireline Competition Bureau

[^1]: Letter from Vol Woods, Salina Independent School District 16, to
    Federal Communications Commission, filed April 11, 2001 (Request for
    Review).

[^2]: Section 54.719(c) of the Commission\'s rules provides that any
    person aggrieved by an action taken by a division of the
    Administrator may seek review from the Commission. 47 C.F.R. §
    54.719(c).

[^3]: 47 C.F.R. §§ 54.502, 54.503.

[^4]: 47 C.F.R. §§ 54.504, 54.511(c).

[^5]: *See* Schools and Libraries Universal Service, Description of
    Services Requested and Certification Form, OMB 3060-0806 (September
    1999) (FCC Form 470).

[^6]: 47 C.F.R. § 54.504(c); *see* Schools and Libraries Universal
    Service, Services Ordered and Certification Form, OMB 3060-0806
    (September 1999) (FCC Form 471).

[^7]: Instructions for Completing the Schools and Libraries Universal
    Service Services Ordered and Certification Form, OMB 3060-0806 (FCC
    Form 471) (September 1999) (FCC Form 471 Instructions), at 26.

[^8]: 47 C.F.R. § 54.504(c).

[^9]: FCC Form 471 Instructions, at 5. Previously, this funding period
    would be referred to as Funding Year 3. Funding periods are now
    described by the year in which the funding period starts. Thus the
    funding period which began on July 1, 2000 and ends on June 30, 2001
    is now called Funding Year 2000. The funding period which began on
    July 1, 2001 and ends on June 30, 2002, previously described as
    Funding Year 4, is now called Funding Year 2001, and so on.

[^10]: *See* FCC Form 471, Block 6.

[^11]: FCC Form 471 Instructions, at 24.

[^12]: FCC Form 471, Salina Independent School District 16, filed
    January 13, 2000 (Salina FCC Form 471).

[^13]: *Id.* at Block 5, Item 12 (FRN 336475).

[^14]: *Id.* at Block 5, Item 23 (FRN 336475).

[^15]: Universal Service Administrative Company, Schools and Libraries
    Division, Form 471 PIA Review Log, January 13, 2000; Letter from Vol
    Woods, Salina Independent School District 16, dated April 14, 2000.

[^16]: Appeal Register (SLD No. 170607), Schools and Libraries Division,
    Universal Service Administrative Company, April 19, 2001 (12:29:12
    PM).

[^17]: Letter from Schools and Libraries Division, Universal Service
    Administrative Company, to Vol Woods, Salina Independent School
    District 16, dated November 24, 2000 (Funding Commitment Decision
    Letter).

[^18]: *Id.* In the *Fifth Reconsideration Order*, the Commission
    established rules to govern how discounts would be allocated when
    total demand exceeds the amount of funds available and a filing
    window is in effect. *See Federal-State Joint Board on Universal
    Service*, Fifth Order on Reconsideration and Fourth Report and Order
    in CC Docket No. 96-45, 13 FCC Rcd 14915, 14934, para. 31 (1998)
    (*Fifth Reconsideration Order*). These rules provide that requests
    for telecommunications and Internet access service for all discount
    categories shall receive first priority for available funds
    (Priority One services), and requests for internal connections shall
    receive second priority (Priority Two services). *See* 47 C.F.R. §
    54.507(g)(1)(i). Thus, when total demand exceeds the total support
    available, SLD is directed to give first priority for available
    funding to telecommunications service and Internet access. The
    annual cap on federal universal service support for schools and
    libraries is \$2.25 billion per funding year. *See* 47 C.F.R. §
    54.507(a). Any funding remaining is allocated to requests for
    support for internal connections, beginning with the most
    economically disadvantaged schools and libraries, as determined by
    the schools and libraries discount matrix (*Fifth Reconsideration
    Order*, 13 FCC Rcd at 14938, para. 36); the schools and libraries
    discount matrix reflects both an applicant's urban or rural status
    as well as the percentage of its students eligible for the national
    school lunch program. 47 C.F.R. § 54.505. Schools and libraries
    eligible for a 90 percent discount would receive first priority for
    the remaining funds, which would be applied to their request for
    internal connections. To the extent that funds remain, the
    Administrator would continue to allocate funds for discounts to
    eligible applicants at each descending single discount percentage,
    *e.g.,* eighty-nine percent, eighty-eight percent, and so on until
    there are no funds remaining. 47 C.F.R. § 54.507(g)(1)(iii). In the
    *Eleventh Order on Reconsideration*, the Commission clarified that
    to the extent that there are single discount percentage levels
    associated with "shared services," the Administrator shall allocate
    funds for internal connections beginning at the ninety percent
    discount level, then for eighty-nine percent, eighty-eight percent
    and so on. *Changes to the Board of Directors of the National
    Exchange Carrier Association, Inc., Federal-State Joint Board on
    Universal Service*, Fifth Order on Reconsideration in CC Docket No.
    97-21, Eleventh Order on Reconsideration in CC Docket No. 96-45, and
    Further Notice of Proposed Rulemaking, 14 FCC Rcd 6033, 6035, para.
    6 (1999) (*Eleventh Order on Reconsideration*).

[^19]: Letter from Vol Woods, Salina Independent School District, to
    Schools and Libraries Division, Universal Service Administrative
    Company, filed December 29, 2000 (SLD Appeal Letter).

[^20]: *Id.*

[^21]: Letter from Schools and Libraries Division, Universal Service
    Administrative Company, to Vol Woods, Salina Independent School
    District 16, dated March 14, 2001 (Administrator's Decision on
    Appeal).

[^22]: *Id.*

[^23]: *Id. See also* Letter from Schools and Libraries Division,
    Universal Service Administrative Company, to Vol Woods, Salina
    Independent School District 16, dated December 13, 1999 (FCC Form
    470 Receipt Acknowledgment Letter).

[^24]: *Id. See also* Salina FCC Form 471.

[^25]: Request for Review.

[^26]: *Id.* Salina correctly notes that the Administrator's Decision on
    Appeal erroneously references FRN 473891 instead of 336475. Because
    the Administrator's Decision also referenced the correct FRN at the
    top of the page, we find that this error was immaterial. As support
    for its contention that Salina complied with the competitive bidding
    requirements, Salina also notes that on Application Number 170607,
    it had also filed a request for Internet access 0and that request
    was approved as submitted.

[^27]: *Id. See also* United States Post Office Express Mail Receipt
    from Salina Public Schools to SLD, postmarked January 13, 2000.

[^28]: *Id.*

[^29]: *See* Salina FCC Form 471.

[^30]: *Id.* at Block 6.

[^31]: *Id.* at Block 5, Item 18.

[^32]: *See supra* n.25.