Lifeline/Low-Income Consumers

A April 2013 Congressional hearing made us think – “Why don’t we make it easy for people to follow developments in the FCC’s Lifeline program?”

Wireless Carriers Fight Pai’s Solution for Easing Lifeline Costs

Federal Communications Commission Chairman Ajit Pai may have thought he was doing wireless carriers a favor when he slashed by nearly two-thirds a potentially costly requirement that they increase data for low-income subscribers starting in December. Instead, budget carriers are fighting his plan, leaving an uncertain future for Lifeline, the Federal Communications Commission’s program to help low-income Americans pay their phone and broadband bills. Pai’s draft order would force carriers like TracFone Wireless to provide 1.5 GB more data than currently required under Lifeline.

FCC Extends Lifeline Program Waivers Due to COVID-19

In light of the ongoing pandemic, the Federal Communications Commission finds good cause to extend its prior waivers of certain Lifeline program rules governing recertification, reverification, general deenrollment, subscriber usage, income documentation, and documentation requirements for subscribers residing in rural areas on Tribal lands through November 30, 2020. The FCC will continue to monitor the situation to determine whether any additional extension of these waivers is appropriate.

House Commerce Democrats Urge Pai to Expand Connectivity Using FCC’s Lifeline Program During COVID-19 Pandemic

Fifteen members of the House Commerce Committee sent a letter to Federal Communications Commission Chairman Ajit Pai urging him to provide unlimited voice minutes and mobile data to Lifeline recipients, with a corresponding increase in the support amount to cover incremental costs, for the duration of the COVID-19 pandemic. The Lifeline program helps low-income Americans afford phone or internet service, but during COVID-19,  the program must be supercharged to accommodate new necessities. Given the importance of connectivity and remote learning, working, and healthcare during the pandemic,

Civil Rights, Labor and Anti-Poverty Groups Demand FCC Amend Lifeline to Help Low-Income Americans Pay Their Bills

As the economic crisis brought on by the coronavirus pandemic continues throughout the United States, a coalition of 25 organizations including the NAACP, the National Consumer Law Center and the Communications Workers of America is urging the Federal Communications Commission to make a number of changes to the Lifeline voice and broadband subsidy program to help low-income Americans pay their phone and internet bills. Among its requests, the coalition is calling on the FCC in a 

Making Lifeline a Snap For Eligible Households

Although Lifeline eligibility is now linked directly to the Department of Agriculture's Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) program, Lifeline has adopted none of the technology advances designed to make it both consumer and provider-friendly.  If the Lifeline program is to play a bigger role in addressing the well-documented internet usage gaps for low-income Americans, the program must be modernized. In a modernized Lifeline program, eligible households would apply

Chairman Pai Proposes Lifeline Minimum Service Standard Order

Federal Communications Commission Chairman Ajit Pai circulated an order to his colleagues that would improve the way the FCC calculates annual updates to the minimum service standard for mobile broadband service provided through the Lifeline program. The draft order would revise the FCC's existing methodology to ensure predictable, reasonable yearly updates to the standard so that Lifeline subscribers can receive robust yet affordable mobile broadband service.

For schools to reopen, Congress must include broadband funding in the stimulus bill

Every K-12 school must have a 21st-century remote access plan to complement the CDC guidance and  Congress must direct the necessary funding for bringing broadband access to all public schools in the next coronavirus stimulus bill.

Commissioner Starks Remarks at Black Mental Health Event

Telehealth services surged during the coronavirus pandemic, and yet we have to deal with the harsh reality that Black communities disproportionately lack access to the telecommunications services that provide access to critical, life-saving care. This is why I have called for an expansion of the Federal Communications Commission’s Lifeline program, which is the only federal subsidy that offers voice and broadband services at a subsidized rate to low-income Americans, to meet the critical needs of this moment in history.

It’s Time to Dial Back on ETC Requirements

The introduction of the Expanding Opportunities for Broadband Deployment Act by Rep. G.K. Butterfield (D-NC) is an important development in the vital Universal Service Fund (USF) program. At a time when all trends point toward reduced regulation as the key to expanding broadband access to more consumers, especially those living in the more costly and remote service areas, this needed legislative reform would eliminate the outdated requirement of an Eligible Telecommunications Carrier (ETC) designation for broadband providers seeking USF grant money.

Schools confront broadband access crisis

School districts are taking it upon themselves to help families get connected to the internet as they face down a long future of virtual learning. Most schools don't even know which students are lacking internet service, and the neediest families are often the hardest to reach. Perhaps the most ambitious initiative is a $50 million, public-private partnership in Chicago, which aims to provide 100,000 public school students with home internet service for four years. The most successful districts have maximized their purchasing power by partnering with other nearby districts or municipalities