Step 5 Application Review

Category of Service Changes

Applicants should ensure that they indicate the proper category of service for products and services specified in each Block 5 funding request of the FCC Form 471 (Description of Services Ordered and Certification Form).

The Eligible Services List (ESL) provides information about the proper categorization of services – Telecommunications, Telecommunications Services, Internet Access, Internal Connections other than Basic Maintenance, and Basic Maintenance of Internal Connections. USAC carefully reviews the services for which funding is requested to determine whether Priority 2 services (Internal Connections and Basic Maintenance) are included in Priority 1 requests (Telecommunications, Telecommunications Services, and Internet Access). If applicants make errors in specifying the proper category of service, USAC may adjust the category.

Example 1: If the equipment that comprises a Priority 1 funding request does not meet all of the necessary requirements to be considered on-premise Priority 1 equipment, USAC will change the category of service on that FRN to Internal Connections. Note that the FRN will be denied if the establishing FCC Form 470 was not posted for Internal Connections.

Example 2: If an FRN contains both Priority 1 and Priority 2 components, USAC will give the applicant the opportunity to “split” the FRN. If the applicant agrees, USAC will create a new FRN and move the Priority 2 components from the original FRN to the new FRN, leaving only Priority 1 components in the original FRN.

If an FRN is split during PIA review, both the original and the new FRN will appear in the Funding Commitment Report of the Funding Commitment Decision Letter (FCDL) for the FCC Form 471 that contains the original FRN.