Jackson Consortium 2027 Cat 1 Fiber Maintenance
Updated
An E-Rate Form 470 from Jackson County School Technology Consortium in Jackson, MI. Providers can bid until Nov 24, 2026.
| Applicant | Jackson County School Technology Consortium |
|---|---|
| Type | Consortium |
| Location | Jackson, MI |
| County | Jackson |
| Form 470 number | 270002767 |
| Funding year | 2027 |
| Posted | Oct 27, 2026 |
| Bids accepted until | Nov 24, 2026 (26 days left) |
| Schools or libraries covered | 95 |
What they are asking for
| Service | What | Quantity | Capacity | Sites |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Internet access | Category One Maintenance And Operations | 23 each | 1 Gbps to 25 Gbps | 95 |
In their words: internet access (Category 1)
The Jackson County Intermediate School District (JCISD) is accepting bids for the ongoing maintenance of the Jackson County Schools Technology Consortium self-provisioned district owned fiber optic network.
Read the applicant's full note
Three and five year bids with option for extensions are being requested.The existing fiber network was constructed primarily in the mid-1990s and is not fully documented to the splice level. It consists of approximately 180 miles of fiber servicing the school districts covered by the consortium in Jackson and Hillsdale counties between the LEA edge locations and the two ISD locations as hub locations.
The Jackson ISD hub is located at: 6700 Browns Lake Rd. Jackson, MI 49201 and the Hillsdale ISD hub is located at: 310 W Bacon St. Hillsdale, MI 49242,The Bidder must submit a complete Maintenance and Operations Plan for the fiber infrastructure, detailing both routine and emergency practices. Pricing should reflect the coverage of all items including: -Routine Maintenance and Prevention: Include annual inspection, scheduled maintenance windows, protocols for planned outages, annual tree trimming (around potential obstructions), Rodenticide/Pest control protocols, and inspection/repair of markers and handholes.-Emergency Management and Restoration: Detail procedures for handling unscheduled outages, customer problem reports, emergency restoration, and repair of fiber breaks (including mean time to repair (MTTR), post-repair testing, and time until first on-site troubleshooting) categorized by the severity.-Infrastructure Repair and Replacement: Specify practices for the replacement of damaged or out-of-spec fiber, and the repair/replacement of loose or broken hangers.
Specify standards for OTDR testing and power meter testing before and after any major repair or replacement.-Coordination and Service Levels: Describe agreements in place with applicable utilities and utility contractors, the process for reading and responding to Miss Dig and NJUNS tickets, and the standard Service Level Agreement (SLA) included with pricing (along with any higher-cost alternative SLAs available).Timeline: RFP Technical Questions Deadline Friday, November 20, 2026 at 4:00 p.m.
Proposal Due Date Friday, December 4, 2026 at 1:15 p.m.A bid opening will take place at 6700 Browns Lake Rd Jackson MI 49201 immediately following the proposal due date.Bids shall be emailed to: [contact in the Form 470]. Bidder must include their SPIN.Requirements and specifications are included in the attached RFP documents.
Their E-Rate history
In funding year 2026, Jackson County School Technology Consortium had $135,000 of E-Rate services before discount, with an 85% E-Rate discount, from Challenger Technologies, LLC.
| Year | Service | Provider | Cost before discount | Bids received | Contract ends |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2026 | Internet access | Challenger Technologies, LLC | $135,000 | 3 | Jun 30, 2027 |
| 2025 | Internet access | Challenger Technologies, LLC | $135,000 | 3 | Jun 30, 2027 |
From USAC funding request data (FCC Form 471). Costs are the amounts requested before the E-Rate discount.
Read the full Form 470 on USAC (PDF)
Source: E-Rate FCC Form 470 data published by USAC (Universal Service Administrative Company) on opendata.usac.org, read once a day and shown as published, without warranty. Always read the full Form 470 and any RFP before you respond, and follow the competitive bidding rules of the E-Rate program.