Houston E-rate Settlement

HISD E Rate settlemnt

(U.S. Newswire Via Acquire Media NewsEdge) BC-HISD-E-Rate-settlemntTo: NATIONAL EDITORSContact: U.S. Department of Justice Office of Public Affairs,+1-202-514-2007, TDD: +1-202-514-1888WASHINGTON, March 8 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- The Houston IndependentSchool District has agreed to relinquish millions of dollars in requests forfederal funds and to pay a total of $850,000 as part of a civil settlementrelating to allegations that the school district violated the False Claims Actin connection with the Federal Communications Commission's (FCC) E-Rateprogram, the Justice Department announced today.


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The E-Rate program, which Congress created in the Telecommunications Actof 1996, provides funding for needy schools and libraries to connect to andutilize the Internet. Under the program, which is funded by fees collectedfrom telephone users, schools apply for funds to pay for hardware and monthlyconnectivity service fees. The FCC oversees the E-Rate program.

The United States contended that the Houston Independent School Districtprovided false information to the E-Rate program and otherwise violated theprogram's requirements by engaging in non-competitive bidding practices forE-Rate contracts. The United States further alleged that school districtofficials received gratuities from technology vendors, including trips, mealsand loans.



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"The E-Rate Program provides critical support for Internet access andwiring to the most under-served schools in the country," said Tony West,Assistant Attorney General for the Civil Division of the Department ofJustice. "We are committed to protecting the integrity of this importantprogram that benefits our neediest children."Assistant Attorney General West noted that the resolution announced todayresulted from an ongoing federal investigation of possible fraud andanti-competitive conduct in the E-Rate program in Texas. The investigation isa collaborative effort involving the Justice Department's Civil Division, theU.S. Attorney's Office for the Northern District of Texas, and the FCC Officeof the Inspector General.

This settlement with the Houston Independent School District is part ofthe government's aggressive efforts to combat fraud through the use ofpowerful enforcement tools such as the False Claims Act. Since January 2009,the Justice Department's total recoveries in False Claims Act cases havetopped $3 billion.

SOURCE U.S. Department of Justice-0-(c) 2010 U.S. Newswire Corp.