COSSBA E-Rate Toolkit
What is E-Rate?
E-Rate is a Federal Communications Commission (FCC) program that discounts broadband and internet costs for schools and libraries, with bigger discounts going to lower-income communities. It does not cover laptops, tablets, software, or digital content.
Each year, E-Rate provides roughly $3 billion in discounts to more than 100,000 schools and about 11,000 libraries, making it the fifth-largest source of federal funding for schools. Importantly, no federal tax dollars are used: the program is funded by the Universal Service Fund, which is paid for by fees on telecommunications companies.
Why this matters now
The FCC is now considering ending or significantly changing E-Rate. The Notice of Proposed Rulemaking (NPRM) can be found here. We need your help urging the FCC and its Chairman, Brendan Carr, to preserve this program and recognize how essential it is to schools and libraries. Comments on the NPRM are due October 13, 2026.
This toolkit is designed for state school boards associations, school board members, and school district administrators, and explains how you can take action to protect E-Rate.
Our partners
COSSBA has partnered with AASA (The School Superintendents Association), CoSN (Consortium for School Networking), EdLiNC, SHLB (Schools, Health & Libraries Broadband Coalition), and other national organizations to provide advocacy resources. Please share these resources with your members.
If you have any questions, please reach out to Julie Feasel, julie.feasel@cossba.org.
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