To be eligible for a Community Connect competitive grant, the applicant must:

(a) Be legally organized as an incorporated organization, an Indian tribe or tribal organization, as defined in 25 U.S.C. 450b(e), a state or local unit of government, or other legal entity, including cooperatives or private corporations or limited liability companies organized on a for-profit or not-for-profit basis.

(b) Have the legal capacity and authority to own and operate the broadband facilities as proposed in its application, to enter into contracts and to otherwise comply with applicable federal statutes and regulations.

(c) Register in the System for Award Management (SAM) (formerly Central Contractor Registry (CCR)).

(1) At the time of application, whether applying electronically or by paper, each applicant must have a Unique Entity Identifier (UEI) and an active registration in SAM before submitting its application in accordance with 2 CFR part 25. Instructions for obtaining the UEI are available at https://sam.gov/.

(2) The SAM registration must remain active, with current information, at all times during which an entity has an application under consideration by an agency or has an active Federal Award. To remain registered in the SAM database after the initial registration, the applicant is required to review and update, on an annual basis from the date of initial registration or subsequent updates, its information in the SAM database to ensure it is current, accurate and complete.

[78 FR 25791, June 3, 2013, as amended at 89 FR 34958, May 1, 2024]