If you intend to apply for any Funding Year 2022 E-Rate on your own behalf (meaning filing for E-Rate for products and services other than those that Networkmaine provides its members), the time has arrived to start your preparations in earnest.

The FY2022 Administrative Window opens today (October 26, 2021) and will remain open until just before the FY2022 Form 471 Filing Window opens (likely early January 2022).

This is your only opportunity to update the EPC profile for your school or district. Applicants report data in their profiles for two purposes:

Frequently Asked Questions


What NSLP and Enrollment Numbers should I use to calculate my E-Rate discount?

For best results, this is where I would usually encourage you to use the lunch data from this month reported to the Department of Education and/or the data reported to Networkmaine on an Alternative Discount Mechanism form during Pre-Enrollment.

However, if you believe that this year's NSLP numbers remain inaccurate due to under-reporting, you may want to continue to use the most recent accurate NSLP data. 

For FY2021 profile updates, we had clear guidance that due to COVID-19 and its impact on student data reporting, it was permissible to use the most current enrollment and NSLP figures available.

The guidance for FY2022 is that "when applicants update their entity profiles in preparation for the FY2022 application filing window, they will be permitted to provide full-time enrollment numbers from their most recently approved FCC Form 471 profile information (FY2020 or FY2021)."

We have not yet heard specifically that it is also acceptable to use NSLP data from previous years for FY2022 filings, but I believe that this ruling is likely and in fact, the above guidance quoted from Friday's Schools and Libraries News Brief may not have intended to have omitted a reference to NSLP. 

Use the steps in the attached guide to update the NSLP and enrollment figures in your EPC profile. Whether or not you intend to file for any E-Rate as an applicant yourself, your individual organization E-Rate discount impacts the overall Netowrkmaine consortium E-Rate discount, so it is important for your EPC profile to be as accurate as possible.


Must I enter student counts for C2 Budget calculations?

FY2022 marks the second year of the five-year Category 2 budget cycle that encompasses FY2021 - FY2025.

If you entered enrollment figures for your C2 budget during the FY2021 Administrative Window, you are not required to update this data for use for the remainder of the C2 budget cycle. However, you may well find it worth your while to do so if you have increased enrollment that might bump up your budget. 

If you did not enter C2 enrollment data for FY2021 or you wish to update the enrollment figures currently in your profile, use the steps in the attached guide to enter this data appropriately.

Whether you choose to update this data or not, you should review it for accuracy.


What if my organizational structure changed?

Contact me directly for assistance if you are aware of any structural changes to your organization (for example split or merged school districts, new schools, or schools that will be closing).


So what do I have to do and how do I do it?

Complete instructions for logging in to EPC and updating your profile are attached.

 
Regardless of what you choose to do with C2 enrollment, make sure NSLP discount numbers are correct.

The steps are actually a lot easier than the quantity of the instructions might imply, particularly if you choose not to update your C2 budget enrollment figure. The guide is broken down by type and size of organization and type of data which means lots and lots of slides with screenshots galore. Choose the sections that apply to your organization and contact me with any questions or concerns.


When should I update my EPC profile?

Although it probably seems like you have all the time in the world to make these updates, I would recommend getting them in as soon as you have your figures at hand lest you forget as time passes. Once the administrative window closes, the EPC system will lock your profile and will not allow any changes.