February 17, 2009
AT&T Technical Services Corp. has agreed to pay the United States more than $8.2 million to resolve allegations that it violated the False Claims Act in connection with the federal E-Rate program, according to a Dept. of Justice press release.
The E-Rate program is administered by the Federal Communications Commission and provides funding for needy schools and libraries to connect to and utilize the Internet. The program is funded by charges collected from telephone users.
The suit contended that AT&T-TSCO engaged in non-competitive bidding practices for E-Rate contracts, claimed and received E-Rate funds for goods and services that were ineligible for the program’s discounts, and overbilled the E-Rate program for services provided.