Internet assistance program cuts subsidy payments ahead of funding draught

Regulators and members of the telecom industry are ratcheting up the pressure on Congress to renew an expiring internet subsidy program, which just downgraded its monthly subsidies from $30 to $14 as it enters its final month of operation. The Affordable Connectivity Program (ACP) will fully cease providing financial support at the end of May if lawmakers fail to imbue the program with new funds. If nothing changes, more than three-quarters of participating households said they’ll have to change their internet plan or forgo service entirely, according to a Federal Communications Commission survey conducted in December 2023. If passed, a bipartisan, bicameral extension bill could pay for the program through 2024, buying time for legislators to work out a longer-term funding solution, but House Speaker Mike Johnson has not scheduled it for a floor vote. Sen. John Fetterman (D-PA), and trade group USTelecom are advocating for folding the ACP into the FCC’s Universal Service Fund, which already supports communications access efforts.