Calculating Library E-rate Discounts for Funding Year 2004 and Beyond

Library discounts for the E-rate program are determined by calculating the percentage of students eligible for the National School Lunch Program for the entire school district in which the library outlet/branch is located and applying that percentage to the FCC's discount matrix. To calculate this percentage, libraries will need to obtain just two numbers for the entire school district in which the library outlet/branch is located:

1. The number of students eligible for the National School Lunch Program and
2. The total number of K-12 students in the school district

Library outlets/branches will then divide #1 above by #2 above to calculate the percentage of students eligible for the National School Lunch Program.

The library outlet/branch will use this percentage along with the Rural or Urban status of the library outlet/branch to determine their E-rate discount using the FCC's discount matrix found in the Form 471 instructions.

Funding Year 2008

The Library of Michigan has provided the two numbers identified above in the table (link below) based on enrollments and NSLP participation reported to the Michigan Department of Education in Fall, 2007. You are also allowed to use more recent data or eligibility data if it is available.

The information provided in the table for FY 2008 (link below) is arranged in alphabetical order by school district in Column A. You will use the TOTAL numbers for the school district in which your library outlet/branch is located.

Please keep in mind that the information you will be providing in Form 471 is subject to audit. The information for the individual schools contained in the table for FY 2008 (link below) is not necessary for the purpose of completing the Form 471 Block 4 Worksheet, but is useful for documenting how the totals for the school district were achieved. The table (link below) may be of value to you in providing discount calculation documentation for Program Integrity Assurance (PIA) review and/or for any required audits. We suggest that you print and keep a copy of the relevant information for your library with your E-rate records.

Urban/Rural Designation

The Urban or Rural status of the library outlet/branch is determined by the geographic location of the library outlet/branch. There is guidance for making this determination on the SLD Web site. Note the instructions for determining the Urban or Rural status before you click on the "Michigan" link.

Discount Calculations for Library Systems

Library systems that are sharing services will calculate their discounts (Form 471 Block 4 Worksheet, Item 9b) by using a simple average of the discounts for each of the library outlets/branches listed. This calculation will be based on the calculation for each outlet/branch described above.

E-rate Discounts for Michigan Libraries-Table for FY 2008

E-rate Discounts for Michigan Libraries-Table for FY 2007

E-rate Discounts for Michigan Libraries-Table for FY 2006

E-rate Discounts for Michigan Libraries-Table for FY 2004 and 2005

Updated 01/22/2008