The SLD committed $28 million this week while denying close to $23 million in Funding Wave 31. Close to $7.8 million was committed for internal connections and $6 million for basic maintenance at the 90% discount threshold. That brings the total 2005 committed amount to $1.21 billion with $1.66 billion still pending.
When examining bids from service providers it is critical that applicants choose the most “cost-effective” solution with price being weighted the most. Many applicants continue to lose out on E-rate support for not following this important FCC regulation. Further competitive bidding information is provided on the SLD website.
Another reminder for applicants is that they only should be requesting eligible services on their Form 471 application. If 30% or more of the request is for an ineligible service or product the whole request will be denied. So far over 500 applicants in 2005 have been denied for not following the “30% rule”.
The full funding waves can be viewed at E-rate Manager Wave Reports.
