FCC Comr. Copps expressed concern about one part of the Commissio...

on distributing the funds directly to schools and libraries based on their size, instead of requiring applications, Copps said. In a separate statement, Copps said such a change could make it harder to identify fraud, because it would let funds be used for unspecified services and equipment, rather than requiring applications that specify where the money would go. Eliminating the application process presents other potential problems, he said: “Distributing funds directly to schools could conceivably exclude Catholic and other private and parochial schools from the E-rate program. Tying funds to school size could conceivably result in our rural and insular schools being denied the funds they need for the extraordinary cost of services in these areas, just because they have fewer students.” Copps said he supports many aspects of the proposal to improve USF programs, which the FCC revealed Tues. in a notice of proposed rulemaking. The E-rate program’s importance “means it needs regular review and care,” he said. Copps said he’s particularly supportive of a proposal to strengthen debarment rules and take new steps to identify and punish “predatory contractors.” Comr. Adelstein said he, too, backs better debarment rules and is glad the NPRM seeks comment on broadening the debarment rule “to encompass entities that have been found guilty of civil and criminal violations beyond those associated with our universal service programs or entities that are shown to have engaged in clear patterns of abuse of our rules.” Adelstein said he’s less supportive of proposals “to adopt overly formulaic approaches,” for example “allocating support based on formulas, like school size, may ignore critical differences in the cost to obtain services in rural parts of the country and may work against smaller or private schools that cannot achieve economies of scale.”