No Home Left Offline Coalition Urge Governors To Take Action On Renewing The Affordable Connectivity Program

The No Home Left Offline Coalition has written to all 50 state governors, urging them to contact their congressional delegation to take action on renewing the Affordable Connectivity Program (ACP). There are 51.6 million households, including 17.7 million unconnected households, that are eligible for the ACP, making it a critical tool for closing America’s stubborn digital divide, of which two-thirds is due to affordability. In their letters, the Coalition, led by EducationSuperHighway, raises serious concerns that millions of under-resourced households, in every state would be impacted when funding for the ACP is projected to run out mid-2024. They point to an imminent digital cliff for 19.5 million households who currently rely on the ACP to cover the cost of their monthly internet service, arguing that if Congress does not refund the ACP in 2023, those families will soon see a big spike in their internet bill and potentially lose service entirely. This would occur just as states prepare to make the biggest broadband investments in history using their Broadband Access, Equity and Deployment (BEAD) allocation.