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 PUBLIC  NOTICE  Federal  Communications  Commission  445  12  th  St.,  S.  W.  Washington,  D.  C.  20554  News  Media  Information  202  /  418-  0500  Internet:  http://  www.  fcc.  gov  TTY:  1-  888-  835-  5322 
 DA  04-  2994 
 DEBT  COLLECTION  ACT  (DCIA)  REQUIREMENTS  APPLICABLE  TO  SCHOOLS,  LIBRARIES,  AND  OTHER  BENEFICIARIES  OF  THE  COMMISSION’S 
 UNIVERSAL  SERVICE  AND  NUMBERING  PROGRAMS  Docket  Nos.  02-  6,  99-  200,  95-  116 


 Release  Date:  September  16,  2004 
 Effective  October  1,  2004,  the  Federal  Communications  Commission  (FCC)  will  implement  its  new  rules  further  implementing  the  Debt  Collection  Improvement  Act  of  1996  (DCIA).  The  new 


 rules  will  have  an  impact  on  anyone  doing  business  with  the  FCC  –  including  applicants  for  numbering  resources,  schools,  libraries,  and  other  universal  service  beneficiaries  –  who  is 
 delinquent  in  debt  owed  to  the  agency. 
 The  new  rule,  found  at  47  C.  F.  R.  §1.1910  and  commonly  referred  to  as  the  “red  light  rule,”  provides  that  any  entity  or  person  filing  an  application  or  seeking  a  benefit  from  the  Commission 


 or  one  of  its  components  (including  the  Universal  Service  Administrative  Corporation,  the  North  American  Numbering  Plan  Administrator  (NANPA),  and  the  Thousands  Block  Pooling 
 Administrator  (PA))  that  is  delinquent  in  debts  owed  to  the  Commission  will  be  barred  from  receiving  any  benefit  until  the  delinquency  has  been  resolved.  Under  this  rule,  when  an 
 application  or  request  for  benefit  is  filed,  the  FCC  Registration  Number  (also  referred  to  as  “FRN”)  will  be  checked  to  determine  if  the  entity  or  person  is  delinquent  in  debt  owed  to  the 
 Commission.  See  September  8,  2004  Public  Notice. 
 All  participants  in  the  Schools  and  Libraries  Program  that  currently  hold  an  Entity  Number  or  Billed  Entity  Number  must  obtain  an  FCC  Registration  Number.  Also,  ineligible  consortia 


 leaders  and  consultants  must  obtain  an  FCC  Registration  Number.  In  addition,  all  service  providers  with  a  SPIN  must  obtain  an  FCC  Registration  Number.  If  a  participant  already  has  an 
 FCC  Registration  Number,  there  is  no  need  to  obtain  another.  An  FCC  Registration  Number  may  be  obtained  on  the  FCC  website  through  the  Commission  Registration  System  (CORES). 
 CORES  may  be  accessed  from  the  main  page  of  the  FCC  website  at  www.  fcc.  gov.  To  obtain  an  FCC  Registration  Number  by  mail,  contact  the  FRN  Help  Desk  at  877-  480-  3201  for  FCC  Form 
 160. 
 We  encourage  everyone  doing  business  with  the  FCC  to  resolve  any  outstanding  debts  prior  to  October  1,  2004.  If  you  are  uncertain  about  the  status  of  your  outstanding  bills  for  collection, 


 open  bills  can  now  be  viewed  by  accessing  the  newly  expanded  Fee  Filer  on-  line  system  located  on  our  website  at  <https://  svartifoss2.  fcc.  gov/  FeeFiler/  login.  cfm>  or  by  sending  an  e-  mail  to 
 ARINQUIRIES@  fcc.  gov. 
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