Media Contact: 
Mark Wigfield, (202) 418-0253
mark.wigfield@fcc.gov
For Immediate Release
FCC Reaches Settlement With New York City Dept. of Education In E-rate Investigation
Washington, D.C.(December 23, 2015) – The Federal Communications Commission’s 
Enforcement Bureau and the New York City Department of Education (NYC DOE) have reached 
a settlement resolving an FCC investigation into whether the school system violated the 
competitive bidding rules of the FCC’s E-rate program, which subsidizes telecommunications, 
Internet access and Wi-Fi services for schools and libraries.
NYC DOE will pay $3 million under the terms of the settlement agreement.  It will also withdraw 
funding requests for 2011-2013, which were frozen by the FCC in June of 2011. In addition NYC
DOE has agreed to withdraw claims to any further E-rate funding for services it purchased from 
2002-2010.  
“This settlement makes clear that the FCC is committed to enforcing its E-Rate rules,” said 
Enforcement Bureau Chief Travis LeBlanc. “Any misuse of E-rate funds denies students and 
citizens of the educational opportunities and access to information that robust broadband in 
schools and libraries provides.”
To ensure NYC DOE’s compliance with the E-rate competitive bidding rules going forward, the 
settlement contains a detailed compliance plan, which includes appointment of an E-rate 
compliance officer to oversee compliance efforts; an independent compliance examiner to review 
all E-rate program forms prior to their submission to the FCC; and an independent compliance 
monitor to review policies and procedures to ensure compliance with fair and open competitive 
bidding requirements.  
In addition to quarterly and annual compliance reporting and an annual independent audit, NYC
DOE will also be required to provide extensive employee training in E-rate rule compliance.
The Consent Decree is available at https://apps.fcc.gov/edocs_public/attachmatch/DA- 15-
1434A1.pdf
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Office of Media Relations: (202) 418-0500
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www.fcc.gov/office-media-relations
This is an unofficial announcement of Commission action.  Release of the full text of a 
Commission order constitutes official action.  See MCI v. FCC. 515 F 2d 385 (D.C. Circ 
1974).