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The clock is officially ticking on a 60-day public comment window regarding an FCC proposal that could eliminate the E-Rate program.

Edited by Brad Randall, Broadband Communities

A critical federal funding lifeline for school and library internet access could be on the chopping block, and broadband advocates are calling on community leaders to speak up before time runs out.

Following a Federal Register publication last Friday, the clock is officially ticking on a 60-day public comment window regarding an FCC proposal that considers terminating or drastically restricting the nearly 30-year-old E-Rate program. Under the proposal, the funding—which helps provide affordable broadband connections nationwide—could be eliminated entirely or limited strictly to rural areas.

With initial public comments due Oct. 13 and reply comments due Nov. 12, the Schools, Health & Libraries Broadband (SHLB) Coalition is urging educators, librarians, and local institutions to make their voices heard in the official record.

“The threat is real: the FCC has formally proposed terminating E-Rate funding, and the time is now for schools, libraries and the communities they serve to tell the Commission what losing E-Rate would cost them,” said Joseph Wender, executive director of the SHLB Coalition.

“If E-Rate ends, the cost of internet access doesn’t disappear. Those bills land squarely on the schools and libraries that can least afford them,” Wender added. “That means choosing between keeping the internet or keeping a teacher, a counselor, or a program. No school or library should be forced to make that choice, and the FCC should not be the reason they are.”

To streamline mobilization, SHLB and its partners launched an action hub at SaveOurERate.com, offering guidance on filing FCC comments, contacting members of Congress, and accessing explanatory webinars.

Some AI tools assisted in the crafting of this report.

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