NaLA’s Annual Consumer Survey sheds light on life without the Affordable Connectivity Program (ACP). Results from over 68,000 respondents, collected between November 1 and 20, 2024, highlight the critical need for the Lifeline and ACP programs to connect low-income households. This year, NaLA’s survey also included more than 30,000 personal testimonies from Lifeline and/or former ACP participants. These stories underscore the profound impact of both programs on consumers and the urgent need for continued support. Key findings include:

• Without the ACP, Americans have had to make tough budget decisions to stay connected to the internet and face challenges without it. 40 percent reported cutting food spending to afford their monthly internet bills. 36 percent indicated they discontinued telehealth without the ACP and 64 percent said they could not maintain regular contact with friends and family.
• The end of the ACP resulted in adults having difficulty finding work and children struggling to complete homework. About 20 percent of respondents report being unable to work remotely or pick up shift work, and nearly 20 percent report children having difficulty completing homework assignments.
• Lifeline and ACP help those who really need it. At least 80 percent of Lifeline/ACP subscribers live at or below the poverty line. Nearly one-third are homeless or live in temporary housing. Over half are older Americans. This includes Americans facing unemployment due to a disability and retirees with limited incomes.
• A majority of respondents are using broadband subsidies for essential services like healthcare, education and access to government services. 70 percent of consumers rely on their ACP/Lifeline benefits to access healthcare services, including communicating with doctors and telehealth appointments. Over one-third of subscribers use their ACP or Lifeline-supported devices to connect with their communities, pursue remote work opportunities, access jobs and participate in online education.

Sens Susan Collins (R-ME) and Angus King (I-ME) are announcing the National Telecommunications and Information Administration (NTIA) is awarding $24.8 million to expand broadband and digital skills training across Maine. Awarded through the NTIA’s Digital Equity Competitive Grant Program, this Maine funding will ensure communities have the access and skills to fully participate in the digital world, regardless of their background or circumstances. The grant program was signed into law under the Biden Administration through King’s bipartisan Digital Equity Act, and included in the Infrastructure Investments and Jobs Act, to provide $2.75 billion to establish three grant programs that promote digital equity and inclusion. The National Digital Equity Center (NDEC) based in Wiscasset will receive $13.7 million to expand access to digital skills training statewide and increase capacity of the State of Maine’s libraries and other community organizations to provide digital equity services, including telehealth. The Greater Portland Council of Governments will also receive $11.1 million to expand workforce development and digital literacy and cyber safety for seniors at community hubs among other goals.

Illinois is the next state to release its Broadband Equity, Access, and Deployment (BEAD) Program application guidelines. The National Telecommunications and Information Administration awarded Illinois $1.04 billion in federal BEAD Program funds to expand high-speed internet access to all homes and businesses. Connect Illinois Round 4 will use these funds to provide broadband to unserved and underserved locations and eligible community anchor institutions. To ensure a fair and competitive subgrantee selection process, the Illinois Department of Commerce & Economic Opportunity’s Office of Broadband is helping applicants understand the procedures and requirements for successful BEAD program applications. According to the office, 175,293 locations are eligible to be connected through BEAD. The subgrantee application and selection process consists of up to three waves, starting with an initial focus on hard-to-serve Project Area Units.

The Virginia Department of Housing and Community Development (DHCD) has formally received two project rescope requests from the following Virginia Telecommunication Initiative (VATI) awardees to rescope their current VATI project area to include passings outside of their original project area:

1. Floyd County - Some of the passings that were originally included in their 2023 VATI project have been determined to be unserviceable due to unlocatable landowners or abandoned homes. This rescope proposes to add additional passings to the project to reassign the unspent grant funding to reach unserved homes in the county not previously included in broadband expansion project.
2. Rockbridge County – A federal award was announced in the area of this 2024 VATI awarded project, and was required to remove passings from the original award area. The county is proposing a rescope of the award area to include other passings outside of the original award area to fully utilize the funding awarded.

This notification starts their required 30-day challenge period.

Everyone On is a national nonprofit organization that has operated digital equity and inclusion programs since 2012. Everyone On’s core work takes a “holistic approach to digital inclusion, connect[ing] under-resourced communities to affordable internet and computers, train[ing] individuals and organizations on digital skills and resources, and advanc[ing] fair and just policies.” Everyone On’s staff and core partners are in the San Francisco Bay Area, Los Angeles, Milwaukee, and California’s Central Valley, but it also works with organizations in many cities across the United States. Instructors and other staff support adult and youth participants with Everyone On’s Digital Skills Academy curriculum. The organization distributes computing devices to learners and hosts in-person events to enroll people in low-cost internet programs. Everyone On also provides tools to support people across the country, such as:

• a national locator tool for finding low-cost internet service, digital skills training, and computers; and
• an enrollment assistance hotline that provides bilingual assistance for enrolling in internet discount and subsidy programs, such as Lifeline.

At the national level, Everyone On is a leader in the field, promoting policies and research focused on closing the digital divide, and forging both regional and national collaborations and partnerships.

Rep Rick Allen (R-GA) introduced the Spectrum Pipeline Act of 2025. This legislation extends the Federal Communications Commission's (FCC) spectrum auction authority and seeks to ensure the efficient allocation of mid-band spectrum, a resource critical for the advancement of 5G and next-generation technologies. Specifically, the bill:

• Identifies spectrum;
• Renews the FCC’s auction authority;
• Promotes unlicensed innovation;
• Ensures remaining spectrum can be licensed or unlicensed;
• Creates new reporting requirements; and
• Upgrades federal systems.

It is the policy of the United States to sustain and enhance America’s global artificial intelligence (AI) dominance in order to promote human flourishing, economic competitiveness, and national security. Within 180 days of this order, the Assistant to the President for Science and Technology (APST), the Special Advisor for AI and Crypto, and the Assistant to the President for National Security Affairs (APNSA), in coordination with the Assistant to the President for Economic Policy, the Assistant to the President for Domestic Policy, the Director of the Office of Management and Budget (OMB Director), and the heads of such executive departments and agencies (agencies) as the APST and APNSA deem relevant, shall develop and submit to the President an action plan to achieve this policy. The APST, the Special Advisor for AI and Crypto, and the APNSA shall immediately review, in coordination with the heads of all agencies as they deem relevant, all policies, directives, regulations, orders, and other actions taken pursuant to the revoked Executive Order 14110 of October 30, 2023 (Safe, Secure, and Trustworthy Development and Use of Artificial Intelligence).

This order establishes the President’s Council of Advisors on Science and Technology to unite the brightest minds from academia, industry, and government to guide our Nation through this critical moment by charting a path forward for American leadership in science and technology. The President’s Council of Advisors on Science and Technology (PCAST) shall have no more than 24 members including the Assistant to the President for Science and Technology (APST) and the Special Advisor for AI & Crypto. The remaining members shall be distinguished individuals and representatives from sectors outside of the Federal Government appointed by the President.  These non-Federal members shall have diverse perspectives and expertise in science, technology, education, and innovation. The APST and the Special Advisor for AI & Crypto shall serve as Co-Chairs of the PCAST.  The Co-Chairs may designate up to two Vice Chairs of the PCAST from among the non-Federal members of the PCAST, to support the Co-Chairs in the leadership and organization of the PCAST. The PCAST shall terminate 2 years from the date of this order unless extended by the President.