About
Formerly known as Bloom Corporation, RDUPonline is a Washington corporation serving Fortune 500 manufacturers, service providers, system design engineers and distributors with their Rural Development Utility Program (RDUP or RUS) Telecommunications Program needs since 2003.
We specialize in equipment acceptance application logistics related to broadband funding programs administered by RDUP Telecommunications such as the Rural Broadband Access Loan and Loan Guarantee Program originally authorized by the Farm Security and Rural Investment Act of 2002 (Farm Bill), Public Law 101-171 and reauthorized by the Food, Conservation, and Energy Act of 2008 commonly know as the 2008 Farm Bill as well as the much publicized American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009, abbreviated ARRA (Public Law111-5) and commonly referred to as the Stimulus or The Recovery Act.
The company wsa founded by telecom executives who recognized from personal experience the most time efficient, least expensive and sure way to maximize the benefit of government funding programs is to utilize the benefits of experience, the likes of which take too long and are too great an investment to develop internally for manufacturers otherwise occupied. Accumulating "Know-How" since the 2003 Farm Bill, RDUPonline employees have received formal training by RUS in their processes, and having established our expertise have helped to define some program elements by working closely with RUS staff over the years. After multiple successful engagements, including numerous List of Material acceptances with various clients, we are well versed in the issues that can arise and the process, procedures and paperwork required as well as potential 'workarounds' to expedite and ensure our clients success in taking full advantage of the program.
Our services include:
Rural Development (RD) resides within the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) and administers over $115 billion dollars of existing loans and nearly $20 billion of new program loans, loan guarntees, and grants in the current fiscal year to rural business, cooperative, housing, utilites and community development programs. Their financial and technial support of essential public facilities and services are vital factors in helping to make sure rural citizens can participate fully in the global economy.
RD is broken up in to the following divisions each managing loan and grant programs separately in their respective area of oversight:
Rural Development Utilities Program Home Page
History
Rural Development (RD) has been known as the Rural Development Utilities Program (RDUP), The Rural Utility Service (RUS) and prior to that, The Rural Electrification Administration (REA).
REA was created (1935) by executive order as an independent federal bureau, authorized by the Congress in 1936, and later (1939) reorganized as a division of the U.S. Dept. of Agriculture. The agency was charged with administering loan programs for electrification and telephone service in rural areas. The REA undertook to provide farms with inexpensive electric lighting and power. To implement those goals the administration made long-term, self-liquidating loans to state and local governments, to farmers' cooperatives, and to nonprofit organizations; no loans were made directly to consumers. In 1949 the REA was authorized to make loans for telephone improvements; in 1988, REA was permitted to give interest-free loans for job creation and rural electric systems. By the early 1970s about 98% of all farms in the United States had electric service, a demonstration of REA's success. The administration was abolished in 1994 and its functions assumed by the Rural Utilities Service. (this history was sourced largely from Columbia Encyclopedia)
List of Materials Acceptable for Use on Telecommunications Systems of RUS Borrowers
To ensure that borrowing organizations are making sound purchasing decisions and positively investing taxpayer dollars all materials used in the construction of government funded rural telecommunications system must be listed in RUS Informational Publication (IP) 344-2, "List of Materials Acceptable for Use on Telecommunications Systems of RUS Borrowers," unless specific written approval has been granted by the Administrator. The List of Materials Acceptable for Use on Telecommunications Systems of RUS Borrowers is also known as the "List of Materials" or "LOM".
RUS Bulletin 345-2, establishes Agency policy that materials and equipment purchased by RUS telecommunications borrowers or accepted as contractor - furnished material, must conform to RUS standards and specifications where they have been established and, if included in RUS IP 344-2, "List of Materials Acceptable for Use on Telecommunications Systems of RUS Borrowers," (List of Materials), must be selected from that list or must have received technical acceptance from RUS.
Therefore manufactures wishing to sell their products to RUS borrowers must request RUS consideration for acceptance of their products and submit data demonstrating their products' compliance with RUS specifications. Compliance with RUS specifications and standards is demonstrated in part via presentation of laboratory tests results and other informational data upon which the determination of acceptability can be made. RUS evaluates this data to determine that the quality of the products is acceptable and that their use will not jeopardize loan security. In the Telecommunications program, because of the complex and highly technical nature of equipment, services and system architectures, RUS also requires a manufacturer to demonstrate successful product use in a working telecommunications system as part of the acceptance process.
Equipment Categories on the List of Materials
Current Copy of the List of Materials
The List of Materials is published on a rolling basis, roughly quarterly. Each publishing incorporates what changes occured since its last publishing such as additions and subtractions of companies, equipment and categories as well as changes to the rules policies and procedures for acceptance.
Links to Documents Establishing the Legal Authority of the List of Materials
The National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) publishes a directory of federal government procurement and regulatory programs titled NIST SP - 739 Directory of Federal Government Certification and Related Programs. Pages from the document discussing the List of Materials can be found via the link below.
Subscribe to Recieve an Email When New Equipment is Added to the LOM
RDUPonline publishes an email newsletter titled RUSupdate which itemizes equipment newly accepted to the List of Materials on a monthly basis. The LOM contains thousands of product listings from hundreds of manufacturers. When changes are made you should be informed.
The Rural Broadband Access Loan and Loan Guarantee Program (RBI) is designed to provide loans for funding, on a technology neutral basis, the costs of construction, improvement and acquisition of facilities and equipment to provide broadband services to eligible rural communities. The goal of these programs is to ensure that rural consumers enjoy the same quality and range of telecommunications services that are available in urban and suburban communities and can participate fully in the global economy.
Citing the lagging deployment of broadband in many rural areas, and the risks of a growing "digital divide" between rual and uban or suburban areas with respect to broadband deployment Congress and the Administration acted in 2001 and 2002 to initiate pilot broadband loan and grant programs within the Rural Utilities Service (RUS) at the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA). Subsequently, Section 6103 of the Farm Security and Rural Investment Act of 2002 (P.L. 107-171) amended the Rural Electrification Act of 1936 to authorize a loan and loan guarantee program to provide funds for the costs of the construction, improvement, and acquisition of facilities and equipment for broadband service in eligible rural communities. Prior to ARRA (likely after it's sunsetting) RUS/USDA was home to the only two federal assistance programs exclusively dedicated to financing broadband deployment: the Rural Broadband Access Loan and Loan Guarantee Program (RBI) and the Community Connect Grant Program (CC).
Between 2007 and 2010 these two broadband programs have provided access to more than $1.6 billion in loans and grants to fund broadband infrastructure such as constructing wireless, DSL, cable modem and fiber to the premises (FTTP broadband systems). These funds were awarded to support high-speed broadband connections in several million rural homes and businesses. Many of the communities where the loans were applied were unserved at the time of the loan approval or had only one provider.
Details on loan types and amounts, eligibility, and application procedures are available in 7 CFR 1738, the Notice of Application Deadline, and Rural Utility Service US Bulletin 1738-1, Rural Broadband Access Loan and Loan Guarantee Program Application Guide.
The Rural Broadband Access Loan and Loan Guarantee Program (Program Number 10.886) is authorized by the Rural Electrification Act of 1936, as amended, and codified as Title VI; 7 U.S.C. 950bb.
History
USDA Rural Development’s involvement with broadband began in 2000 with a broadband pilot program, established with the help of a $100 million loan program authorized by the President of the United States and Congress. The program provided loan funds to rural communities with up to 20,000 residents. During the first year, Rural Development approved 12 loans for the entire $100 million. In addition, an extra $80 million was provided by the Agriculture Appropriations Act of 2002, and a total of 16 loans were approved during the second year of the pilot program. In total, the pilot program delivered 28 loans with $180 million based in 20 States. The pilot program was successful because it allowed the agency to quickly implement a program and get an idea of what the needs and interests were for broadband. The program has, and will continue, to facilitate deployment of broadband in rural areas. Currently, 40 percent of the projects financed under this program are successfully completed. However, the pilot approach did not include the risk- mitigating rules that are in place today with regard to equity and loan security. As a result, approximately 30 percent of the pilot loans defaulted. Rural Development continues to work with these borrowers to negotiate financial arrangements to repay the loans. Rural Development used the experience as a learning tool by applying those valuable lessons learned to the Broadband Loan Program that exists today which enjoys a sub 1% default rate presently.
The 110th Congress considered reauthorization and modification of the program as part of the farm bill. On July 27, 2007, the House passed the Farm, Nutrition, and Bioenergy Act of 2007 (H.R. 2419), which contained authorizing language (Title VI, Rural Development) for the broadband loan and grant programs. On December 14, 2007, the Senate passed its version of the farm bill, the Food and Energy Security Act. The farm bill conference report (H.Rept. 110-627) was approved by the House on May 14, 2008, and by the Senate on May 15, 2008. Additionally, H.R. 2035, H.R. 2174, H.R. 2569, H.R. 2953, S. 541, S. 1032, and S. 1439 were introduced to address some of the reauthorization issues related to the RUS broadband loan program.
Link to Program Homepage
The Telecommunications Infrastructure Loan Program makes long-term direct and guaranteed loans to qualified organizations for the purpose of financing the improvement, expansion, construction, acquisition, and operation of telephone lines, facilities, or systems to furnish and improve telecommunications service in rural areas. All facilities financed must be capable of supporting broadband services. A "Rural Area" is defined as any area of the United States, its territories and insular possessions (including any areas within the Federated States of Micronesia, the Republic of the Marshall Islands, and the Republic of Palau) not included within the boundaries of any incorporated or unincorporated city, village, or borough having a population exceeding 5,000 inhabitants. The population figure is obtained from the Bureau of Census.
The Telecommunications Infrastructure Loan Program improves the quality of life in rural America by providing investment capital, in the form of loans, for the deployment of rural telecommunications infrastructure. In order to achieve the goal of increasing economic opportunity in rural America, USDA Rural Development’s Utilities Programs finances infrastructure that enables access to a seamless, nationwide telecommunications network. With access to the same advanced telecommunications networks of its urban counterparts, especially broadband networks designed to accommodate distance learning, telework and telemedicine, rural America has seen improved educational opportunities, health care, safety and security and ultimately, higher employment. The Agency is committed to ensuring that rural areas have access to affordable, reliable, advanced telecommunications services, comparable to those available throughout the rest of the United States, to provide a healthy, safe and prosperous place to live and work.
Over its lifetime through fiscal year 2010 this program awarded more than $13 billion which has been invested in improved telecommunications services to rural subscribers
Details on loan types and amounts, eligibility, and application procedures are available in 7 CFR 1737, which is available from RUS upon request.
The Rural Telephone Loans and Loan Guarantee Program is authorized by the Rural Electrification Act of 1936, as amended, Titles II and III, 7U.S.C. 921, 922-924, and 930-940.
Link to Program Homepage
When signed into law by President Obama on February 17th, 2009 ARRA established several broadband initiatives with $7.2 billion in funding. To facilitate the initiatives two programs emerged from the ARRA; the Broadband Technology and Opportunities Program (BTOP) and the Broadband Investment Program (BIP).
Broadband Technology Opportunities Program (BTOP)
BTOP is a $4.7 billion funding program administered by the National Telecommunications and Information Administration (NTIA) in consultation with the FCC. The purpose of BTOP is to provide access to broadband in unserved areas, improve broadband access for both underserved areas and public safety agencies, and provide broadband education, training and support.
The BTOP program is additionally charged with making $250 million available for innovative programs that encourage sustainable adoption of broadband services; at least $200 million will be available to upgrade technology and capacity at public computing centers, including community colleges and public libraries; $10 million will be a transfer to the Office of Inspector General for the purposes of BTOP audits and oversight. Up to $350 million of the BTOP funding is designated for the development and maintenance of statewide broadband inventory maps.
Link to Program Homepage
Broadband Investment Program (BIP)
The Broadband Investment Program is a $2.5 billion funding program administered by the Rural Utilities Service (RUS) of the USDA. This program is designed to support the expansion of broadband service in rural areas through financing and grants to projects that provide access to high speed service and facilitate economic development in locations without sufficient access to such service.
RUS will provide a combination of direct loans and grants to applicants whose projects offer high speed broadband service and facilitate economic development in underserved areas which offer the most viable, economically advantageous proposals presented.
Link to Program Homepage
The List of Materials
Rural Development Utilities Program Home Page
Rural Development Annual Report
Rural Broadband Program Brochure
Is my company required to get on The List of Materials?
RUS vs. RDUP vs. REA vs. RD? Why so many names?
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