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ECF Compliance Reminders

ECF Compliance Reminders

ECF Applications and Funding Requests

  • The COVID-19 public health emergency expired on May 11, 2023, setting June 20, 2024 as the sunset date for the Emergency Connectivity Fund (ECF). Thereafter, ECF Program support will only be available for purchases of eligible equipment and services made by the June 30, 2024 date.
  • Below is a summary of upcoming deadlines based on the sunsetting of the ECF Program on June 30, 2024:
    • Service delivery dates: The service delivery dates were extended in the May 2023 Service Delivery Deadline Extension Order as detailed below. See also 47 CFR § 54.1711(e).

       

  • Invoice filing deadline: Requests for reimbursement must be filed within 60 days of: the FCDL; an RFCDL approving a post-commitment change or a successful appeal of previously denied or reduced funding; or the service delivery date, whichever is later. See 47 CFR § 54.1711(d).

Audits and Other Investigations

  • ECF Program participants are subject to audits, inspections, and investigations by USAC, a state education department, the FCC and its Office of Inspector General, or any local, state, or federal agency with jurisdiction over the ECF participant.
  • In addition, certain ECF applicants may also be subject to the Single Audit Act requirements if they receive $750,000 or higher in federal funding within a fiscal year. ECF support should be reported on the Schedule of Expenditures of Federal Awards (SEFA), along with other reportable federal funding.
  • ECF participants are required to produce the documentation for these audits, inspections, and investigations upon request. See 47 CFR §§ 54.1714 – 54.1715 for additional information.
  • We remind ECF participants that the inability to produce adequate documentation that demonstrates compliance with the ECF Program rules during an audit may lead to audit findings and potential recovery actions.

Document Retention and Production Requirements

  • The FCC also adopted record retention and production rules for the ECF Program. Specifically, ECF Program participants are required to retain documentation related to their participation in the ECF Program sufficient to demonstrate compliance with all ECF Program rules for at least 10 years from the last date of service or delivery of equipment. This includes, for example, equipment and service inventory lists, documentation on how the applicant determined its unmet needs, and invoicing/reimbursement documentation. See below for more details about equipment and service inventory lists and unmet needs determination documentation requirements.
  • The documentation must also be provided upon request from any representative appointed by USAC, a state education department, the FCC and its Office of Inspector General, or any local, state, or federal agency with jurisdiction over the participant.
  • For more information, please see 47 CFR § 54.1715, FAQs #8.1-8.5, and USAC’s ECF Document Retention page.
  • Program participants may be subject to recovery or other actions for not complying with these ECF Program document retention and production requirements.

Equipment and Service Inventory Lists

  • As part of the record retention requirements, ECF Program participants are required to keep equipment and service (i.e., asset) inventory lists for each ECF-funded connected device, other piece of equipment, or broadband connection provided to a student, school staff member, or library patron. The specific requirements of the asset inventories are described in 47 CFR § 54.1715, as well as in the FCC’s FAQ #8.5 (under Record Retention Requirements).
  • The equipment inventory list must identify the following for eligible equipment purchased with ECF support:
    • The device or equipment type (i.e., laptop, tablet, mobile hotspot, modem, router);
    • The device or equipment make/model;
    • The device or equipment serial number;
    • The full name of the person to whom the device or other piece of equipment was provided; and
    • The dates the device or other piece of equipment was loaned out and returned, or the date the school or library was notified that the device or other piece of equipment was missing, lost, or damaged.
  • The service inventory list must include the following information for eligible services purchased with ECF support:
    • Type of service provided (i.e., DSL, cable, fiber, fixed wireless, satellite, mobile wireless);
    • Broadband plan details, including: upload and download speeds and monthly data cap;
    • The full name(s) of the person(s) to whom the service was provided;
    • The service address (for fixed broadband service only);
    • The installation date of service (for fixed broadband service only); and
    • The last date of service, as applicable (for fixed broadband service only).
  • For additional details, please see DA 23-166, FAQs #8.1-8.5, and 47 CFR § 54.1715.

Documentation of Unmet Need Determination

  • Applicants must maintain documentation supporting how they determined their unmet need. ECF participants may only request reimbursement for eligible equipment and services provided to students, school staff members, or library patrons who would otherwise lack broadband services and/or devices sufficient to engage in remote learning. This means that an applicant may request reimbursement for less than the estimated unmet need numbers used in its ECF FCC Form 471 funding application.
  • In the event of an audit, schools should expect to be asked for documentation to support the actual costs of assigned equipment and/or services after funds have been committed or disbursed, and how they determined their unmet need. Libraries should expect to be asked for documentation supporting the requirement to provide patrons with a copy of an eligible use policy explaining that the equipment or service is intended for library patrons who do not otherwise have access to equipment or services sufficient to meet the patrons’ educational needs and the patrons’ signed statement saying they would otherwise lack such access.
  • For additional detail, please see please see DA 23-166 and FAQs #6.7, 6.9 & 6.10.

Device Storage, Usage, and Service

  • The purpose of the ECF Program is to provide eligible devices and broadband services to students, school staff, and library patrons who would otherwise lack sufficient access to these resources to be able to fully engage in remote learning during the COVID-19 emergency period. As such, participants may only request ECF reimbursement for equipment and/or services that fulfill an actual unmet need of a student, school staff member, or library patron.
  • Applicants cannot warehouse or request reimbursement for devices and/or equipment that are not being used by a student, school staff member, or library patron with unmet needs.
  • Similarly, applicants and service providers cannot willfully or knowingly seek reimbursement for the monthly recurring services associated with any devices or equipment that are not being used.
  • ECF participants should take reasonable actions to monitor and track the usage of equipment and services that are purchased and used through the ECF Program. ECF participants should be prepared to explain what actions were taken, if asked how they complied with the non-usage certification during an audit or other post-commitment review.
  • Please see DA 23-166 and FAQs #9.4, 9.12, 9.12a, & 9.14 for additional information.
  • Program participants may be subject to recovery or other actions for not complying with these ECF Program requirements.

Replacement/Additional Devices or Equipment

  • The purchase of extra devices or equipment to account for anticipated equipment loss, breakage, or future need is ineligible for ECF support.
  • The ECF Program also limits support to one connected device and one Wi-Fi hotspot per student, school staff member, or library patron and one fixed broadband connection per location.
  • Please see FAQs #4.4 & 9.14 for additional information.
  • Program participants may be subject to recovery or other actions for not complying with these ECF Program requirements.

On-Campus Equipment and Services

  • Equipment and services purchased for use solely at a school or library are ineligible for ECF support. While many schools have returned to in-person learning and students may use the devices while at school, we remind ECF participants that the purpose of the program is to provide support for students, school staff, and library patrons to engage in remote learning at locations that include locations other than at a school or library. Applicants and service providers may receive ECF support for eligible equipment and services used at locations that include, but are not limited to, the homes of students, school staff, and library patrons; community centers; churches; and any other off-campus locations where they are engaged in remote learning activities, such as homework.
  • ECF-funded fixed wireless or wireline connections may not, however, be used on-campus and we encourage schools and libraries to seek support for their on-campus connectivity needs through the E-Rate program.
  • Please see FAQs 3.1, 3.2, & 3.3 for additional information.

Reasonable Costs

  • The ECF Program rules require the costs of eligible equipment and services to be reasonable. The program established maximum reasonable support amounts of $400 per connected device and $250 per Wi-Fi hotspot. While the FCC did not impose a maximum reasonable support amount on services, the costs for services are generally expected to be in the range of $10 to $25 per month. The costs of eligible equipment and services will be reviewed to ensure they are reasonable. ECF participants should be prepared to justify the equipment and service selection process they used and reasonableness of costs, if requested, during the review process.
  • ECF participants will only be reimbursed based on the actual costs of the equipment or services. If the reimbursement request is based on an amount that is determined to be greater than the actual or market-based cost of the equipment or service requested, the request for reimbursement may be reduced or denied because the requested costs are determined to be unreasonable. For example, requesting $400 for a connected device with actual costs of $200 or $250 for a hotspot device that is available for $99, would be considered to be unreasonable.
  • For additional detail, please see 47 CFR § 54.1707, and FAQs #5.1-5.10.