In the Matter of: 
  
Wireline Competition Bureau Seeking Comments on E-rate Category Two ) WC Docket No. 13-184 
I am pleased to be able to provide input on the impact of having access to secure and sufficient 
funding for our library WiFi and internal connections. Before the E-rate Modernization in 2014, virtually 
no libraries received funds for then, Priority 2 services. Unless we were at a 90% discount rate, we could 
assume there would be no funding left after all requests for internet access were funded. USAC data 
shows that most libraries are eligible for a 70% discount or less and according to the American Library 
Association, many libraries stopped bothering to apply for WiFi funding. Some states have reported that 
none of their libraries have received WiFi funds since the beginning of the E-rate program. 
In communities across the country, people turn to the library to use our WiFi on their tablets, laptops, 
and other devices. Library users are downloading job applications, applying for financial aid, seeking 
health information, and communicating with family - all dependent on a strong WiFi signal. People without reliable internet access depend on library WiFi, including disbled, homeless, travelers, and students. Increasingly, 
libraries also provide services that depend on WiFi, like coding clubs for K12 youth. Libraries everywhere 
know WiFi throughout the library is not a “nice to have” - it's a core community service. 
With the commitment of the FCC to ensure a library budget of $2.30 ($5.00 for a selected category of 
larger urban and suburban libraries) per square foot, libraries can finally upgrade outdated equipment 
or plan for new construction. They have confidence that desperately needed support will be there. 
Please maintain secure funding through the full five year budget period as adopted during the 2014 
Modernization. Our communities depend on that funding.

Thank you,

Kim Turner