★ Free · No signup · Estimate in 30 seconds
How much could your school save on technology?
Three numbers in, your discount tier and 5-year savings out. Plus: CIPA-compliant content filtering, an E-Rate eligibility requirement we can help you meet.
Top-tier discount
90%
For schools at 90%+ FRL or CEP status
- $10K Wi-Fi refresh → $1K out of pocket
- $50K firewall + switching → $5K out of pocket
- Annual internet: 90% covered, every year
- Stacks across 5-year Category 2 cycle
Estimate your savings.
Enter your enrollment, free/reduced-lunch percentage, and current internet bill. The calculator does the rest — no signup, no contact info required.
Your School
Across all campuses you'd include in one E-Rate application.
From your Nevada Report Card profile. Drives your discount rate.
Category 1 — internet access and telecom. No budget cap.
Switches, wireless access points, firewalls, cabling. Category 2.
Your Estimated E-Rate Position
Discount tier
70%
Based on 50–74% FRL
5-yr Category 2 budget
$80,628
$201.57 × students × 5 yrs (FY2026 floor: $30,175)
| What you're paying for | Annual cost | You pay | E-Rate covers |
|---|---|---|---|
| Internet (Category 1) | $7,800 | $2,340 | $5,460 |
| Network refresh (Category 2, 5-yr avg) | $7,000 | $2,100 | $4,900 |
| Annual total | $14,800 | $4,440 | $10,360 |
| 5-year total | $74,000 | $22,200 | $51,800 |
Estimate only. Actual discount is determined by USAC based on your verified FRL data, school category, and urban/rural status. Category 2 funding is per-applicant and capped at the 5-year budget. Service providers cannot help complete Form 470 — schools post needs publicly and any qualified provider may bid.
One catch with E-Rate: you must be CIPA-compliant.
The Children's Internet Protection Act requires every E-Rate recipient to filter inappropriate content, maintain an Internet safety policy, and certify compliance annually. It's straightforward — but if you're not already doing it, your funding can be clawed back. We've built our K-12 stack around making this part painless.
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DNS & web content filtering
Cloud-delivered DNS filtering blocks adult, violent, gambling, and weapons content at the network edge — no client software on each device. Granular allow/block by content category. Reporting that satisfies CIPA audit requirements.
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Internet Safety Policy & AUP
We provide a CIPA-aligned Internet Safety Policy template and Acceptable Use Policy (AUP) tailored to your grade band, including the required board affirmation language. Each year we send you a reminder before your Form 486 certification window and retain a copy of the signed affirmation in your compliance file — so it's ready if USAC ever asks.
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Managed firewall & logging
If you'd rather filter at the firewall (instead of, or in addition to, DNS), we configure and manage your edge device with CIPA-compliant rule sets, SSL inspection where appropriate, and log retention. Same filtering on guest Wi-Fi as on the staff network.
What CIPA compliance actually requires
- Technology Protection Measure — a filter that blocks obscene visual depictions, child pornography, and material harmful to minors (for student use). Must be enforced on all devices accessing the network.
- Internet Safety Policy — a written policy addressing access, safety, unauthorized disclosure of personal info, and unlawful online activities. Must include digital citizenship education for minors.
- Public notice & hearing — one-time when first adopting the policy. We provide a template public notice and meeting agenda.
- Annual certification — the school certifies CIPA compliance each year on Form 486 when claiming E-Rate funding. We send a reminder before your certification window and keep a copy of the signed board affirmation in your compliance file.
Already filtering? We'll audit your existing setup against CIPA's requirements and document the gaps — no charge, no obligation. Most schools find one or two missing pieces, usually around policy documentation rather than the technology itself.
Common CIPA questions.
Do we have to filter staff internet too, or just student traffic?
CIPA's filtering requirement applies to computers accessed by minors. Adults can have filtering disabled or relaxed for "bona fide research or other lawful purposes" — but in practice most schools apply the same filter to staff with administrative overrides as needed. We help you design the policy and configure the technology so adult overrides are auditable.
What happens if we're audited and our filtering isn't compliant?
USAC can recover funding paid out during a non-compliant period — meaning E-Rate dollars you've already spent. The audit risk is real but the fix is usually quick (most "non-compliance" is missing documentation rather than missing technology). The bigger risk is funding-year disruption: a CIPA finding can delay Form 486 certification and hold up payments.
Our charter is small — does CIPA still apply?
Yes. CIPA applies to any school or library that receives E-Rate Category 1 internet/telecom or Category 2 internal connections funding, regardless of size. Same goes for libraries that receive LSTA federal funding. The threshold isn't size — it's whether you're taking the federal money.
Does our existing firewall already do this?
It depends. Most modern firewalls (Sophos, Meraki, Fortinet, SonicWall) have content filtering built in — but the filter has to be enabled, configured against the CIPA categories, and producing logs you can show at audit. We do a free audit of your existing setup to tell you exactly where you stand. If your gear is recent and configured well, you may not need anything new beyond policy documentation.
Can we put CIPA-compliant filtering on E-Rate?
Yes — DNS filtering, web content filtering, and the firewall hardware itself are all on USAC's Eligible Services List. Cloud-based filtering services are typically Category 1, firewall hardware is Category 2. Your discount rate applies to both. Many schools fund their entire filtering solution through E-Rate.
Free CIPA + E-Rate readiness assessment.
15-minute call. We'll estimate your discount tier, audit your current filtering against CIPA requirements, and tell you what's needed before your next Form 471 — at no charge, no obligation.
Schedule your free check →
(702) 625-3550