Recently, Senators Markey and Sullivan received a response from Chairman Pai echoing support for E-rate program, a vital federal program that supports millions of students in America and worth fighting for. In his letter, Pai thanked the Senators for expressing their support for the E-rate program. He also, stated that he believes that “…E-Rate is a key component of the Universal Service Fund and helps millions of students in America benefit from digital learning…” In addition, Pai pointed out the shortcomings of the program, saying that the administration of the E-rate program has serious flaws, specifically the development and roll-out of the online E-Rate Productivity Center (EPC). The E-rate portal USAC created has already had an $11 million over run which was originally supposed to cost $19 million but the final cost is projected to be over $60 million.
FCC Chairman Pai recognizes the importance of providing affordable high speed connections to school and libraries and stated that he is looking forward to “…pursue the goal of promoting digital learning.”
Chairman Pai’s letter to Senator Markey and Senator Sullivan can be viewed here.
