Schools and libraries from around the US pleaded with the Federal Communications Commission to drop the idea of ending E-Rate, a $2 billion-a-year program that connects students and library visitors to the Internet.
FCC Chairman Brendan Carr has criticized school districts for having “experimented with a massive increase in screen time for students,” and said E-Rate expanded too far beyond its original purpose of “supporting basic Internet access to schools and libraries for educational purposes.” In June, Carr led a 2-1 vote to issue a Notice of Proposed Rulemaking (NPRM) seeking public comment on whether E-Rate should be “limited or sunset to reflect today’s extensive connectivity rates.”
Carr’s proposal could result in E-Rate cutting the discounts that schools and libraries receive for telecom services and equipment, and imposing more restrictions on how E-Rate money can be used. The FCC seeking comment on whether to sunset the program also raises the possibility that Carr might choose to axe E-Rate entirely.
The National Association of Elementary School Principals told the FCC that it “strongly supports the continued operation of the E-Rate program and urges the Commission to reject proposals that would eliminate, substantially restrict, or impose new conditions on this essential source of connectivity assistance for schools and libraries.”
The Carr FCC already scaled E-Rate back last year by ending funding for schools and libraries to lend out Wi-Fi hotspots and for Wi-Fi service on school buses.
FCC authority to kill program in dispute
The FCC docket received comments this week opposing the proposal from state and national associations, and from many individual schools and libraries. The American Library Association told the FCC that E-Rate is working as Congress intended it to when it passed the 1996 telecommunications law that resulted in E-Rate’s creation.
“Importantly, the FCC does not have the authority to terminate the E-Rate program. The E-Rate program is mandated by Congress, and the FCC is responsible for administering it,” the national library group said.
If Carr goes through with eliminating E-Rate, he may argue that its original mission has been completed and that the FCC therefore has authority to end it.
“In establishing the program in 1996, Congress was addressing a specific problem: limited access to advanced telecommunications and Internet services in schools and libraries,” Carr’s proposal said. “Given the substantial expansion of broadband access in schools and libraries over the last three decades, we seek comment on whether and to what extent the E-Rate program has fulfilled that mission and whether continued funding is consistent with Congress’s original objective.”
There are other questions about FCC authority raised by the proceeding. For example, the American Library Association said “the FCC lacks the authority and expertise to regulate screen time or determine educational outcomes.”
The group’s filing pointed out that under US law, determinations about what content is inappropriate for children “shall be made by the school board, local educational agency, library, or other authority responsible for making the determination.” The law says the US government may not establish criteria for making those decisions or review the decisions made by local schools and libraries.
Texas and New York library groups agree
The Texas Library Association told the FCC that E-Rate should be giving more money to libraries to help them raise broadband speeds to modern standards. The group also said public libraries in the state have implemented appropriate supervision and filtering for the Internet services they offer library users.
“Only 35 percent of Texas public libraries currently receive E-Rate discounts, compared with 65 percent of public libraries nationwide, and only 55 percent meet the Commission’s own recommended broadband speed benchmarks,” the group said. “A gap this size, in the nation’s second-most populous state, is evidence of unmet need working through real obstacles—not evidence that the need has passed.”
The New York Library Association told the FCC that “E-Rate is essential for reliable broadband speeds and for regular network maintenance, safety, and security. The library can’t operate without the Internet. If the FCC terminates or limits E-Rate funding, many of New York’s libraries will be forced to reduce programs and services in order to continue providing Internet access.”
The American Indian Higher Education Consortium told the FCC that it should relax E-Rate’s eligibility restrictions and provide more funding for schools. It said that supporting Tribal colleges and universities is “one of the most cost-efficient ways the federal government can endeavor to uphold its treaty and trust obligations to Tribal Nations and Tribal citizens, while simultaneously benefiting the nation as a whole.”
A filing by the Alabama Association of School Boards urged the FCC to “preserve and strengthen the E-Rate program and to reject any proposal that would eliminate, sunset, substantially reduce, or unnecessarily restrict E-Rate support for schools and libraries.” The group said concerns about excessive screen use “should not be addressed by reducing the broadband infrastructure that students and teachers need for legitimate educational purposes.”
Principal tells FCC his school needs E-Rate
The FCC received specific examples of how E-Rate helps local communities. “We estimate our annual Internet cost at approximately $3,120 and our annual E-Rate support at approximately $1,560,” Paul Lapka, the principal of Rock Valley Christian School in Iowa, told the US agency. “E-Rate support allows us to maintain reliable, high-speed Internet and network equipment. If support were reduced, we would face higher local costs, delayed network upgrades, and pressure to redirect funds from other school priorities.”
Were the FCC to end E-Rate, schools and libraries would no longer be able to purchase new equipment and broadband service, which would upset broadband providers.
“The widespread availability of broadband connectivity and service in schools and libraries is an important E-Rate achievement, not a reason to withdraw support for the connectivity on which those institutions continue to rely,” the FCC was told by America’s Communications Association, a cable industry lobby group. “Schools and libraries must continue to pay for broadband service, maintain and replace internal network equipment, and upgrade capacity as their needs evolve.”
The Schools, Health & Libraries Broadband Coalition (SHLB) called it “disheartening and surprising that the Commission in the current proceeding asks questions that run directly counter to the goals of universal service and Congress’s directives. While most of the country and world are racing ahead to prepare for the future facing our nation’s citizens and students, the Commission is asking whether it should shelve or significantly reduce the E-Rate program, which is the financial pillar supporting most schools’ and libraries’ digital connections.”
FCC Democrat Anna Gomez voted against Carr’s proposal in June, saying that E-Rate helps give children in low-income neighborhoods and rural communities “the same shot at a digital education as anyone else.” She criticized the FCC’s inquiry into screen time, saying that “policing children’s behavior in schools goes far beyond our stated mandate. The FCC is not the nation’s parent. It is not the nation’s teacher. And it is not the nation’s school board.”
E-Rate typically distributes over $2 billion a year. It has a funding cap of $5.2 billion, but actual payouts are based on demand and the application approval rate. E-Rate and other Universal Service Fund (USF) programs are paid for by fees imposed on phone companies, which usually pass the cost on to consumers on their monthly bills.
The deadline for the first round of comments passed yesterday, and reply comments may be submitted until November 12. After the comment period, Carr can present his final plan to either change or eliminate E-Rate. Given that Republicans have a 2-1 majority on the FCC, whatever Carr proposes is likely to be approved. But FCC decisions are often challenged in court on the grounds that the agency exceeded its authority.
