Insights: Broadband Legal Strategies Blog

The FCC today released a draft Notice of Proposed Rulemaking and Order on changes to the Rural Health Care program. 

USAC has announced that the FY 2027 filing window will open on December 1, 2026, and close on April 1, 2027.  Applicants may begin submitting FCC Forms 461 and 465 and start the competitive bidding process on July 1, 2026.

The Federal Communications Commission’s Wireline Competition Bureau (Bureau) released the proposed Funding Year 2027 E-Rate Eligible Services List (ESL) on June 30, 2026. 

The Commission last week released a draft Notice of Proposed Rulemaking (NPRM) and Further Notice of Proposed Rulemaking (Further Notice) that seeks comment on the future of the E-Rate program, including whether the program is necessary, whether and how funding can be reduced, and how to ensure the program is used for “educational purposes.”  

The Wireline Competition Bureau and the Office of the Managing Director released a public notice seeking comment on potential reforms to the operations and management of the Universal Service Administrative Company (USAC).  Comments are due May 15, 2026.

On March 12, 2026, Wisconsin Bell, an AT&T subsidiary, agreed to pay $55 million to settle a whistleblower lawsuit. 

On February 17, 2026, the Wireline Competition Bureau (Bureau) issued an order granting appeals for applicants whose requests for reimbursement were late-filed, despite being submitted before the USAC-generated invoice filing deadline. 

On February 4, 2026, the FCC’s Wireline Competition Bureau (WCB or Bureau) released an order granting an appeal filed by ENA Healthcare. 

USAC will begin using the System for Award Management (SAM.gov) banking information to pay all Universal Service Fund (USF) invoices in August 2026. 

In its February news brief, USAC announced that in-person training for the E-Rate program will take place on September 15, 2026 in Phoenix and on September 24, 2026 in Washington, D.C.  USAC will provide information on registration for these events in a future news brief.

The Federal Communications Commission’s Enforcement Bureau issued an advisory on February 11, 2026, reminding all telecommunications carriers and interconnected VoIP providers of their obligation to file their annual certification documenting compliance with the Customer Proprietary Network Information (CPNI) rules by March 2, 2026. 

On December 11, 2025, President Donald Trump issued an executive order (Order) to promote artificial intelligence (AI) and block states from enforcing laws to regulate AI. 

On December 17, 2025, the FCC’s Wireline Competition Bureau (the Bureau) released the E-Rate Eligible Services List (ESL) for Funding Year 2026.

On September 30, the Wireline Competition Bureau released a public notice seeking comment on its proposed eligible services list (ESL) for funding year (FY) 2026.

With Commissioner Anna Gomez dissenting, the FCC voted 2-1 on September 30 at the Commission’s monthly meeting to remove the eligibility of bus Wi-Fi and Wi-Fi hotspots outside of a school or library building from the E-Rate program.

After Congress failed to reach an agreement on funding the government, the Federal Communications Commission shut down at 12:01 Eastern on October 1.

On September 3, FCC Chairman Brendan Carr announced he is proposing to eliminate school bus Wi-Fi and Wi-Fi hotspot eligibility for E-Rate funding. 

The Senate’s USF Working Group (Working Group) has reconvened to discuss possible Universal Service program reform. 

In a 6-3 decision on June 27, 2025, the Supreme Court upheld the constitutionality of the federal universal service program’s contribution mechanism. 

On May 8, 2025, the U.S. Senate voted along party lines to repeal the E-Rate Wi-Fi Hotspots Order.