08/17/2026
INFORMATION ABOUT SHOWING SUPPORT FOR THE ERATE
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Contact: Samyukta Dinesh
Marketing & Communications Manager
[email protected]
E-Rate Funding for Schools and Libraries Faces Termination as Public Comment Clock Starts
WASHINGTON, D.C. (August 14, 2026) – The Schools, Health & Libraries Broadband (SHLB) Coalition and its partners today urged the communities that depend on E-Rate to act now. The Federal Communications Commission's (FCC) proposal to potentially terminate the E-Rate program was published in the Federal Register today, formally starting the clock on the public's chance to respond.
Publication opens a 60-day public comment period and an additional 30-day reply comment period. Comments are due on or before Oct. 13, 2026, and reply comments are due on or before Nov. 12, 2026. Comments filed in this docket become part of the official record the Commission must consider before it can act.
The proposal asks whether E-Rate, which has provided affordable broadband to schools and libraries for nearly 30 years, should be terminated or limited to rural areas only. The SHLB Coalition maintains that the program's success is the reason to sustain it, not dismantle it, and that this comment window is the most important chance the community will have to be heard.
"The threat is real: the FCC has formally proposed terminating E-Rate funding, and the time is now for schools, libraries and the communities they serve to tell the Commission what losing E-Rate would cost them," said Joey Wender, Executive Director of the SHLB Coalition. "If E-Rate ends, the cost of internet access doesn't disappear. Those bills land squarely on the schools and libraries that can least afford them. That means choosing between keeping the internet or keeping a teacher, a counselor, or a program. No school or library should be forced to make that choice, and the FCC should not be the reason they are."
SHLB and its partners have launched an action center at SaveOurERate.com, a central hub for everyone who depends on the program. The site houses the resources the community needs to get involved, including tools to file comments with the FCC, guidance on how to write to members of Congress and other ways to take action. Advocates new to the issue can start with the webinar recording available on the site, which walks through what's at stake and how to make an effective comment.
With the comment clock now running, the coalition urges the community to:
File a comment with the FCC by Oct. 13, 2026. The tools at SaveOurERate.com make it straightforward to share your story about how E-Rate supports connectivity in your school, library or community.
Contact your members of Congress. The action center includes tools and talking points for writing to and meeting with your representatives and senators.
Spread the word. Share SaveOurERate.com with colleagues, board members and others in your community who depend on E-Rate.
The coalition intends to make every day of the comment window count to fill the record with the voices of the schools, libraries, and communities that depend on E-Rate.
SHLB will also feature E-Rate at AnchorNets 2026, the coalition's annual conference, held October 7-9 in Arlington, Virginia. The conference falls within the comment window, a few days before the Oct. 13 deadline, and will include programming on the FCC's proposal and what it would mean for schools and libraries. Registration and agenda details are available at: AnchorNets.org
Media Availability
Joey Wender is available for interviews. For more information, visit www.shlb.org or follow on LinkedIn, Facebook, or X.
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About SHLB: The SHLB Coalition is a nonprofit, 501(c)(3) advocacy organization that supports open, affordable, high-quality broadband connections for anchor institutions and their surrounding communities. The SHLB Coalition is based in Washington, D.C. and has a diverse membership of commercial and non-commercial organizations from across the United States. To learn more, visit www.shlb.org.
The SHLB Coalition advocates for policies and programs that enable anchor institutions to obtain and promote open, secure, high-quality broadband services to support connectivity and opportunity for all.
