Accounting for the Receipt and Expenditures of Emergency Connectivity Fund (ECF) Funding

Congress authorized the Emergency Connectivity Fund (ECF) as part of the American Rescue Plan Act of 2021 (CFDA/ALN 32.009). The ECF Program will cover reasonable costs of laptop and tablet computers; Wi-Fi hotspots; modems; routers; and broadband connectivity purchases for off-campus use by students, school staff, and library patrons with a documented “unmet need”. ECF funds are not “traditional E-Rate” and are subject to Single Audit requirements:

“…schools and libraries participating in the Emergency Connectivity Fund Program that meet the thresholds for being audited under the Single Audit Act are subject to a single audit that contains the FCC compliance supplement for the Emergency Connectivity Fund Program.”

ECF funds are administered and paid by the Universal Service Administrative Company (USAC). Therefore, amounts received by districts should be recorded as “Other Revenue – Federal Sources” under Major Class 419, Suffix 0000. Expenditures of ECF funding should be recorded with Grant Code 440 (new).

Resource: Michigan Department of Education, Office of Financial Management, Financial Accounting Guidance During the COVIC-19 Pandemic, Last Updated January 21, 2022