Announcements

March 24, 2026

FCC Bans Seven Convicted E-Rate Fraudsters from USF Programs

On March 20, 2026, the FCC barred seven individuals who had been convicted of defrauding the E-Rate program from participating in activities associated with any Universal Service Fund-supported program.  Corporations controlled by these individuals received over $14 million in E-Rate funds from 2010 to 2016 but failed to provide much of the equipment for which they had billed the federal government. Read more in the FCC’s press release.

March 17, 2026

FCC Announces 2Q26 Contribution Factor 37.0%

The FCC released a Public Notice, DA 26-218, announcing that the proposed universal service contribution factor for the second quarter of 2026 (April, May, June) will be .370 or 37.0 percent.

March 6, 2026

Service Provider Payment System Unavailable 3/28/2026

Service providers will not be able to make payments using E-File on Saturday, March 28 from 6 p.m. until 11 p.m. ET due to maintenance on the Pay.gov system. We apologize for any inconvenience.

February 27, 2026

2026 FCC Form 499-A Now in E-File

The 2026 FCC Form 499-A is now available in E-File. All service providers with a 499 Filer ID must file this annual form by April 1, 2026.

February 11, 2026

Service Provider Payment System Unavailable 2/14/2026

Service providers will not be able to make payments using E-File on Saturday, February 14 from 6 p.m. until 10 p.m. ET due to maintenance on the Pay.gov system. We apologize for any inconvenience.

January 8, 2026

** Postponed** Service Provider Payment System Unavailable January 31

This activity has been postponed to an undecided date.

Service providers will not be able to make payments using E-File on Saturday, January 31 from 6 p.m. until 11 p.m. ET due to maintenance on the Pay.gov system. We apologize for any inconvenience.

December 18, 2025

FCC Releases the 2026 FCC Forms 499

On December 16, 2025, the FCC released the 2026 FCC Form 499-A and 499-Q along with their accompanying instructions. You can view the public notice on their website.

With this publication, the de minimis threshold for calendar year 2026 will be $37,175 of combined interstate and international telecommunications revenue.

To learn more about the de minimis threshold, please visit our webpage.

December 16, 2025

FCC Announces 1Q26 Contribution Factor 37.6%

The FCC released a Public Notice, DA 25-1026, announcing that the proposed universal service contribution factor for the first quarter of 2026 (January, February, March) will be .376 or 37.6 percent.

December 4, 2025

Service Provider Payment System Unavailable December 13

Service providers will not be able to make payments using E-File on Saturday, December 13 from 6 p.m. until 10 p.m. ET due to maintenance on the Pay.gov system. We apologize for any inconvenience.

November 3, 2025

** CANCELLED ** Service Provider Payment System Unavailable 11/8/2025

Service providers will not be able to make payments using E-File on Saturday, November 8, 2025 from 6 p.m. until 11 p.m. due to maintenance on the Pay.gov system. We apologize for any inconvenience.

October 20, 2025

Resolved: Call Center Disruption

Thank you for your patience – this issue has been resolved. The phones for USAC’s Fincance Customer Service Center is currently experiencing disruptions. We are working to resolve the issue. If you need assistance, please contact USAC by email or create a ticket in EPC. We apologize for the inconvenience.