What the Benton Institute Learned about Affordable Connectivity Plan Enrollment and Digital Equity Planning

The Benton Institute for Broadband & Society recently launched an ACP Enrollment Performance Tool to compare expected Affordable Connectivity Program (ACP) enrollment to actual enrollment. The difference is a measure of performance. The tool displays actual ACP enrollment, predicted enrollment, as well as metrics that help users understand the drivers of good (or not-so-good) performance, such as housing costs or severe poverty. In the event ACP sunsets in 2024, the tool can also help identify places most at risk for disconnection—and help guide policymakers as they consider how to fill the ACP void should the program end. The ACP puts more low-income Americans on the same footing as everyone else regarding communications tools in the United States. Over 80% of households with incomes over $50,000 annually have both wireline and wireless internet service plans. Low-income households often must choose between a cellular data plan or a wireline one for service. Many opt for cellular data plans because it is a flexible communications tool (mobility, voice, and internet service). The ACP subsidy allows low-income households to add a service, whether it is a wireless or wireline service. One could argue that the ACP is the single most important policy intervention to advance universal service policy goals in the past quarter century.