FCC Weighs Ending $2.5 Billion E-Rate Program as Schools Warn of Broadband Cuts

3 articles · Updated · WTOP · Aug 24

Comments due by Oct. 13 will shape the FCC’s top-to-bottom review of E-Rate, a 30-year-old program that gives more than 96,000 schools and libraries annual broadband discounts.
The agency says E-Rate may have fulfilled its mission and links the review to student screen-time concerns, while also asking whether support should be narrowed to rural districts or sunset entirely.
Districts say the stakes go far beyond classroom apps: high-poverty systems can get discounts of up to 90%, and Desert Sands is cutting a $1 million network upgrade to $200,000 through E-Rate.
Advocates argue the program saves schools and libraries more than $2.5 billion a year, survived a 6-3 Supreme Court challenge, and now underpins attendance, payroll, transportation and campus operations.
If funding is reduced, superintendents say they would have to absorb millions in added internet costs by cutting staff or programs, even as they push for reforms such as stronger cybersecurity support.