Extended CSC Hours for Final Days of the Application Filing Window

The Customer Service Center (CSC) will be open additional hours in advance of the close of the FY2022 FCC Form 471 application filing window to help applicants with last-minute questions and any issues.

Here are CSC's hours starting Friday, March 18 (all times are ET):

Friday, March 18 – 8 a.m. to 10 p.m.
Saturday, March 19 – Closed
Sunday, March 20 – Closed
Monday, March 21 – 8 a.m. to 10 p.m.
Tuesday, March 22 – 8 a.m. to 11:59 p.m.

Last-Minute Filing Tips for the FCC Form 471 Application Filing Window

In last month's SL News Brief, we provided some FCC Form 471 tips for first-time filers. Below are some additional tips to keep in mind during this last week of the FCC Form 471 application filing window.

Returning to an incomplete FCC Form 471
If you are not finished with a form and you need to exit the form or EPC times you out, you can click the SAVE & CONTINUE button to save your work on the current page and then exit the browser. EPC will create a task for you under the Tasks tab and in the My Tasks list on your landing page to return to the form and complete your data entry.

We strongly encourage you not to use the SAVE AND SHARE button that appears at the bottom of many of the entry screens of your form. This button will send a task to everyone in your organization to continue working on the form except you.

If you have provided all of the required information but you are not a full-rights user, you can click the SEND FOR CERTIFICATION button in EPC after you review the PDF version of your form to create a task for all full-rights users to be able to access, review, and certify the form.

Certifying your FCC Form 471
You can certify the FCC Form 471 yourself if you are a full-rights user for this form. Check with your account administrator if you believe you should have these rights but are unable to certify your form.

Remember that sending a form to full-rights users in your organization will mean that you will no longer have access to edit the form. You do have the ability to review the information you provided on a PDF version of the form before you send it for certification, and full-rights users must review that PDF version before they can proceed to certification.

Correcting information on the FCC Form 471 after it is certified
You are not limited to correcting entity profile information with the Receipt Acknowledgment Letter (RAL) modification option. You can file RAL Modification Requests to correct any information on the form, including editing the information you have provided on a funding request or even adding or removing a funding request. Note that your PIA reviewer may have questions for you about the reason(s) you have for the changes you request. To learn how to submit modification requests for your FCC Form(s) 471, view the FCC Form 471 Receipt Acknowledgment Letter Modification Guide.

Guidance on Advance Installation of Non-recurring Services
In certain situations, non-recurring services may be installed before FY2022 begins on July 1, 2022. Program rules permit applicants to request E-Rate program discounts for Category One non-recurring charges incurred up to six months prior to the July 1 start of the funding year (i.e., on or after January 1), provided that construction begins after selection of a service provider pursuant to a valid competitive bidding process; a Category One recurring service depends on the installation of the infrastructure; the service start date is on or after the start of the funding year; and no invoices (FCC Form 472 or FCC Form 474) are dated prior to July 1 of the funding year.

Installation of Category Two non-recurring services may begin on April 1 prior to the July 1 start of the funding year. Applicants are permitted to place an order for E-Rate Category 2 eligible equipment (included on their FY2022 application) prior to April 1, 2022 provided that the equipment is not delivered to the applicant before April 1, 2022. No invoices (FCC Form 472 or FCC Form 474) can be certified prior to July 1 of the funding year.

Contacting the Customer Service Center (CSC)
We suggest that you open a customer service case in EPC or call CSC at (888) 203-8100 as soon as you realize that you have a question or problem. CSC will be open for additional hours starting March 18 (see above) but the sooner you communicate your issue to us, the more quickly we can help resolve it.

Please see the News Brief link above for the full version of the newsletter.

Happy filing!

Liz

Liz Thigpen Schreck | Director

Ocoee River Regional Library

State E-rate Coordinator for Public Libraries

Office of Tennessee Secretary of State Tre Hargett

718 George St., NW, Athens, TN 37303

P. (423) 745-5194 – office; (423) 649-1583 - direct

Regional Toll Free - (855) 692-8186

Fax (423) 649-1501

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