Earlier this month, the trades publication Broadband Breakfast reported on a public draft of a Federal Communications Commission inquiry. That document asked for comments “into its $2.5 billion-per-year broadband subsidy for schools and libraries would ask commenters whether or not the program should see its funding reduced or sunset.”
This program, now in its third decade, was created to, as Broadband Breakfast states, “to address a lack of internet access in education centers.” It stated that the draft notes “that in the decades since, most schools report having broadband and infrastructure has expanded widely.”
School systems in West Virginia, however, report that the need for the funding persists, especially as funding sources from the federal and state governments have dwindled.
The FCC document addresses two main concerns, first that “screen time” has been proven damaging to children and also that the original goal of the program was fulfilled. As the FCC document shares, “Congress enacted the E-rate program to ensure that schools and libraries across the country ‘have access to advanced telecommunications services.’” It goes on to state that “virtually all schools report having broadband connectivity.”
The document notes increasing parental and expert concern over children’s “screen time” and cites a study that shows that 84 percent of that occurs at school. It adds that parents have expressed concerns that their children may be able to access harmful or inappropriate materials while at school. In recent years, this has been addressed by Congress.
In 2023, Senators Shelley Moore Capito, Ted Cruz, and Ted Budd promoted the “Eyes on the Board Act.” It mandates that schools using E-Rate “block social media access on subsidized networks and services and to adopt policies that limit screen time in school.” The West Virginia State Legislature followed through and passed an act requiring school districts to adopt personal device limitation policies in the classroom.
Subsequent federal legislation also tightened rules on using E-Rate funded technology and services to access social media.
The draft document poses a number of questions for which the FCC wishes to receive comments.
Many of these relate to the effectiveness of federal, state, and local laws and regulations on use of technology and what children are able to access at school
One significant question worries school systems, however. “Should the E-Rate program be limited or sunset to reflect today’s extensive connectivity rates?” It relates closely to “at what point should policymakers conclude that the core objective has been achieved?”
As Pendleton County Schools Chief Financial Officer and Treasurer J. P. Mowery explains, the issue of connectivity has shifted from making the connections to maintaining them. He stated that “we receive over $50,000 annually, primarily for data circuits and access to the internet.”
He noted what the program calls “Category 2” expenses, which include the “option to apply for internal connections such as cabling, switches, routers, servers, et cetera.” E-Rate reimburses for 90 percent of those costs.
Funding shifts dramatically from year to year. In 2025, PCS received almost $97,000, but $51,537 for 2026. PCS budgets conservatively, assuming that they would receive a lower amount.
Calhoun County Schools also relies on E-Rate to support its technology program. As Bonnie Sands, Chief Operations Officer of Curriculum and Instructional Technology shared, the program is a substantial help in maintaining vital high speed connections. “Calhoun County Schools relies on E-Rate to help fund our data connection to the West Virginia Department of Education network in Charleston,” she explained. Sands also added that student enrollment and participation in the Community Eligibility Provision determines the discount rate. The Community Eligibility Provision “allows high-poverty schools to provide free meals based on direct certification through programs such as SNAP and TANF.”
For internet and transport, Calhoun gets a 90 percent discount which covers almost all of the $74,100 cost of connection. For category two, an 85 percent discount does “support refreshing our Wi-Fi infrastructure and replacing routers at each location. The five-year category two budget for Calhoun is $225,000.
The FCC draft document expresses concern about mission creep when it notes that schools have mostly been connected to broadband since the program started. That said, the funds now are used to maintain, rather than establish, those connections.
Another, longer term telecommunications support program has evolved alongside the technology it was meant to support. A 1930s era program used to connect land line telephone service in rural areas provided a reimbursement to rural telecommunications cooperatives that they could then reinvest into expanding connections.
Hardy Telecommunications and Seneca Rocks-Spruce Knob Telecommunications are two West Virginia based telecommunications cooperatives that date to that era. They now take the fee paid for land line connection and invest it into expanding internet service. While the original need has long passed, the evolved program continues to serve the purpose of rural communications.
Mowery and Sands argue that the E-Rate program remains relevant. Sands stated “as a small rural county, we deeply appreciate the support these funds provide.” She added that “E-Rate allows us to maintain essential infrastructure while preserving local dollars for direct investment in students, teachers, and classrooms.”
This reflects the balancing, and at times juggling, act that school systems enact to stay within parameters set by the state and also the limitations of the funding formula.
Mowery noted that “it would be another added concern to the overall budget picture if we were to lose all or part of that funding.” Pendleton County receives Secure Rural Schools funding based on the presence of the Monongahela National Forest to compensate for economic activities there. That funding is perpetually debated as well.
He added “I don’t believe we would cut access or reduce internet speed, but we would have to reduce expenses in other areas.”
“It has been a crucial funding source for all these many years, particularly when breaking even
was our yearly reality,” he concluded.
