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Protecting Internet Access at Your Library:

How E-Rate Keeps You and Our Library Connected

Highlights:

  • E-Rate is a federal program that has helped schools and libraries afford reliable Internet access for 30 years, providing discounts based on community need.
  • CRCPL relies on E-Rate to provide public computers, free WiFi, and secure network infrastructure used by thousands of patrons each year.
  • The FCC has proposed significantly reducing or ending E-Rate, arguing the program has accomplished its mission.
  • Without E-Rate, libraries and schools would have to absorb the full cost of Internet service, potentially leading to cuts in staffing, programs, and other essential services.
  • Ending E-Rate would disproportionately impact low-income communities, widening the digital divide and limiting access to education, employment, healthcare, and government services.
  • CRCPL's WiFi hotspot lending program will end after October 2026 because federal funding for hotspot lending was eliminated and the program is too costly to sustain locally.
  • The library is encouraging community members to contact Congress and advocate for protecting the E-Rate program.

Visit shlb.org/save-our-e-rate for more information and to send a message directly to your legislators.


What is E-Rate?

We all know that technology isn't cheap. So how do under-funded public libraries continue to provide access to computers with Internet and WiFi, all while technology costs are climbing for consumers? The answer for 30 years has been the Federal Communication Commission’s E-Rate program.

E-Rate provides a discount to schools and libraries throughout the US on the Internet service they buy. The discount is based on need, with schools and libraries serving more low-income communities receiving the largest discounts, ranging from 20 to 90 percent of eligible costs. E-Rate supports more than 100,000 schools and roughly 11,000 libraries across the country, providing approximately $3 billion in discounts every year.

Funding for E-Rate only covers eligible services and equipment, and applicants must run a competitive bidding process to select providers. E-Rate does not pay for laptops, tablets, software, or digital content. The program solely supports Internet connectivity and the network that carries it. The program operates under an annual spending cap, and participants are subject to audits and oversight.

How Does CRCPL Use E-Rate?

At the Chillicothe & Ross County Public Library, we utilize E-Rate funds for our provision of Internet for staff and patron computers; for our WiFi access points; and for equipment upgrades to keep our network safe. Just last year, over 17,000 of our patrons used a computer with Internet in the library, and nearly 165,000 patrons accessed our free WiFi. Library staff uses Internet for internal and external communications and to check out books to patrons, not to mention the variety of internal building systems which rely upon WiFi to operate these days.

The FCC’s Threat to E-Rate

Internet is pivotal to library operations and services, which is why we’re concerned about the FCC’s June 25, 2026, proposal to severely limit or terminate the E-Rate program. When E-Rate began in the 1990s, most libraries and schools had little or no Internet access. Today, nearly every library and school in the country has a high-speed connection. The FCC points to that success and suggests the job is finished. The reality is the opposite. That connectivity exists because E-Rate helps libraries and schools pay for Internet access year after year.

A network is a continuing commitment. Bandwidth needs grow every year. Equipment ages and has to be replaced. Treating E-Rate as a finished project is like deciding to stop maintaining a highway because it has already been built. Congress understood this from the start. The 1996 Telecommunications Act, which created E-Rate, defines universal service as an “evolving level of telecommunications services,” a commitment meant to keep pace with advancing technology.

What Happens if E-Rate Ends?

So what happens if E-Rate goes away? Schools and libraries would have to absorb the full cost of their internet service, and for institutions already working with tight budgets, that money has to come from somewhere. That most likely means cuts to staffing and program budgets. The deepest harm falls on the students who can least afford it since E-Rate discounts are tied to need. Pull the funding, and the digital divide between well-resourced districts and struggling ones grows.

Screen Time

In addition to claiming that E-Rate has served its purpose and should cease to exist, the FCC also claims that access to high-speed Internet via schools and libraries is leading to an increase in harmful screen time for children.

While concerns about children’s screen time deserve to be taken seriously, they should not become a backdoor for dismantling one of the country’s most successful connectivity programs and adding unnecessary budgetary strain on schools and libraries. Intentional, educational technology use should not be conflated with unsupervised parental phone use. “Screen time” is not a single, narrow concept.

The library’s Public Service Policy affirms that the library “does not assume or overrule the rights and responsibilities of parents and guardians” and that it “supports the responsibility and the rights of parents and guardians to guide their own children’s use of the library and its resources and services.” We recommend that parents monitor their own children’s use of library technology resources, including time spent on our computers and utilizing WiFi.

Without reliable, affordable broadband, students cannot fully participate in their education, and schools and libraries cannot function effectively. At a time when school systems are addressing growing cybersecurity threats and preparing students with critical digital and artificial intelligence (AI) skills, efforts should be directed toward strengthening and modernizing this vital program to meet the needs of students, educators and communities.

So, Who Is Using the Internet at Libraries?

While children certainly utilize our in-library computers and WiFi connections for homework and research, our high-speed broadband helps a wide variety of people achieve goals in their daily life. The empty-nest parent who is ready to go back to school to further their education. The young entrepreneur using our Internet to run their small business. The elderly patron needing to access their social security account. The person who wants to connect with a faraway loved one. And of course, our patrons who lack connectivity but wish to enjoy our digital library resources like eBooks and research databases. The needs are limitless, but one program helps support them all:  E-Rate.

Hotspot Lending Program Ending without Funding

A casualty of the FCC’s attack on broadband in schools and libraries is CRCPL’s WiFi Hotstpot lending program. Unfortunately, after October 2026, the library will cease to offer WiFi hotspots for patron checkout.

We know how important this program has been for our patrons. During the Covid pandemic and through special funding from the FCC, we were able to expand our reach by lending out 500 hotspots to students and educators throughout the county. People were able to connect online while staying safe at home. Once that funding came to an end in June 2024, we maintained an arsenal of about 100 hotspots annually for patron checkout, via the library’s materials budget.

Last year, we had a glimmer of hope when the FCC announced that it would expand E-Rate funding to include hotspots for students and library patrons. We crunched the numbers, determined our need, and submitted a request for the maximum amount of hotspots we could receive under the program’s guidelines. We were ready to go. But on September 30, 2025, the FCC killed that part of E-Rate, denying all funding requests for off-premises hotspot lending.

Lending hotspots has been extremely difficult for the library. The library purchases the hotspots for approximately $100 per device. Each device requires a monthly service plan, ranging from $15-30 per device per month. With devices checking out for a period of 2 weeks at a time, the return-on-investment for a program like this is incomparable to any other library resource and therefore unreasonable. Libraries have been proud partners in bridging the digital divide, serving as a stopgap for the lack of broadband availability in rural communities. However, without additional funding, this burden is too great for the library to bear.

If you’ve ever put a WiFi hotspot on hold at our library, you know that the wait period is lengthy, sometimes more than a month. We simply cannot keep up with the demand for these devices. As soon as patrons turn hotspots in, they put them back on hold. Oftentimes, patrons don’t return devices until they’ve been deactivated, which also slows down the lending process. We can’t blame them – when you need Internet, you need Internet. Connectivity is no longer a luxury, it is a basic human need. We don’t fault our patrons for holding onto the hotspots as long as they can, but it does impede our ability to move the devices down the lending line.

How Can You Help?

Since E-Rate is a congressionally-mandated program, we need Congress to defend the program. We invite you to tell your Senators and Representatives what broadband access at the library means to you and your community. Visit https://www.shlb.org/save-our-e-rate for more information and to send a message directly to your legislators.