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Discounts on Telecommunication Services
Is your school receiving discounts for regulated telecommunications
services? Many educators are unaware of state-regulated programs
available to them. These discounts can allow your district to
maximize its telecommunications budget. Sprint Local Telephone
Division (LTD) files tariffs in each of its 18 in-franchise
territory states for all local services. These tariffs, a
matter of public record, establish the pricing for state-regulated
services.
In four states, NE, KS,
MO, and TX, Sprint LTD offers
telecommunications services discounts to schools, libraries,
healthcare/hospitals, and government as defined by the state public
utility commissions (PUC). Discounts may be provided to end-users
(not other carriers) for plain old telephone service (POTS),
broadband data (T1s), ISDN PRI/BRI, and frame relay (FR.).
Discounts vary by state and in some states there are no special
tariffs to provide discounts. In some states telecommunications
are purchased off a state contract where special pricing was already
provided.
These discounts are separate from the Federal E-Rate
discounts. This information will provide a summary of
existing discount programs, some of which require schools
to complete an affidavit before the services can be
ordered. We recommend checking this site before obtaining
pricing from a Sprint Representative to ensure the discounted
price is offered. It is also important to check this
site before the Federal E-Rate filing period each year,
beginning in September. Discounts are provided in the
following states:
Nebraska
| Name
of Program: |
GRR,
Sect 9, pp 8 & 9, Rel 1 |
| Public
Law or PUC Mandate: |
Frame
Relay Service for Schools |
| Eligibility: |
K-12
public schools accessing Educational Service Units
(ESUs) 12, 13, and 14 |
| Services
Discounted: |
The
General Exchange Tariff provides a "School Matrix,"
which is a special tariff for 56 Kbps or 1.54 Mbps
frame relay connections in ESUs 12, 13, 14 areas.
Schools must access the ESUs via the United Telephone
Company of the West frame relay switch located in
Scottsbluff, Alliance, or Sidney. There are special
tariffed rates for non-recurring and recurring charges
(access link, port connection, permanent virtual circuit
[PVC], and committed information rate [CIR]). |
| Affidavit
Required: |
No |
Kansas
| Name
of Program: |
Interactive
Video Service for Educational and Medical Uses |
| Public
Law or PUC Mandate: |
General
Exch. Tariff, Sect 21 |
| Eligibility: |
K-12,
Higher Education & Medical Institutions |
| Services
Discounted: |
25%
discount on ISDN PRI/BRI, T1 and fractional T1 |
| Affidavit
Required: |
Yes (one type
for K-12 schools and higher education and one type for medical institutions) |
|
| Name
of Program: |
Discount
on Broadband Services for K-12 Schools, Higher Education,
Public Libraries, Hospitals, and Government. |
| Public
Law or PUC Mandate: |
Kansas
Corporation Commission (KCC) under paragraph 66-2005 |
| Eligibility: |
K-12,
Higher Education, Libraries, Hospitals, State & Local
Government |
| Services
Discounted: |
25%
discount on point-to-point broadband services, defined
at 1.54 Mbps or greater, to any accredited school;
any public library; or other state and local government
facilities. When individual case basis (ICB) pricing
is used, the discount will be 25% off the ICB retail
price. The discount applies to both recurring and
non-recurring charges. |
| Affidavit
Required: |
Yes
(one type for K-12 schools, higher education, and public
libraries and one type for hospitals and government). |
Missouri
| Name
of Program: |
Missouri School Discount Program |
| Public
Law or PUC Mandate: |
P.S.C. MO. - No. 22, Sect 6 |
| Eligibility: |
K-12 and Higher Education Schools |
| Services
Discounted: |
20% discount on POTS, ISDN PRI/BRI, T1 and fractional T1 |
| Affidavit
Required: |
Yes |
Texas
| Name
of Program: |
House
Bill (HB) 2128 |
| Public
Law or PUC Mandate: |
Public
Utility Regulatory Act (PURA), Chapter 59 |
| Eligibility: |
K-12,
Higher Education, the Texas Education Agency (TEA),
regional education service centers (RESCs) established
and operated pursuant to the Education Code, Chapter
8, the Texas Higher Education Coordinating Board
(THECB), public and regional library systems. |
| Services
Discounted: |
T1,
DS2, DS3, and any special networks at long-run incremental
cost (LRIC) plus 10 percent, referred to as 110%
LRIC. The customer may elect to use the 110% LRIC
pricing or take the 25% discount off the standard
rate in the general exchange tariff. For ISDN BRI
and PRI circuits, not considered private line, the
customer must take the 25% Distance Learning and
Information Sharing Program discount. |
| Affidavit
Required: |
Yes |
|
| Name
of Program: |
Distance
Learning and Information Sharing Program |
| Public
Law or PUC Mandate: |
GCST,
Sect 2, Third Revised Sheet 22 |
| Eligibility: |
K-12
Schools and Libraries |
| Services
Discounted: |
The
25% state discount mandated under the "Distance Learning
and Information Sharing Program" is applied AFTER
the E-Rate discount. The E-Rate discount CANNOT be
used on top of the HB2128 (110% LRIC.) Eligible customers
can either use the combo plan of the 25% discount
and rate funding OR the HB2128 rate. |
| Affidavit
Required: |
Yes |
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