Low-income

We're all obviously aware of the unprecedented National Emergency President Donald Trump declared on March 13, 2020 and the shelter-at-home orders many have lived under in the last few months. Telework, telehealth, and distance education have all boomed during this time, testing residential broadband networks like never before. Back in the early weeks of the crisis, assessments based on data from broadband providers themselves and third-party internet traffic monitors led one policymaker to declare that surges in Internet traffic are well within the capacity of U.S.

The Federal Communications Commission in April estimated that 22.3% of Americans in rural areas and 27.7% of Americans on tribal lands don’t have access to fixed broadband with the typical speed standard of 25 megabits per second (mbps), a moderate browsing speed. By comparison, only 1.5% of Americans in urban areas can’t reach that speed. Nearly 21% of Americans also aren’t active smartphone users, according to market research.

Colorado Attorney General Phil Weiser (D-CO) led a bipartisan coalition of 39 attorneys general in urging Congress to help ensure that all Americans have the home internet connectivity necessary to participate in telemedicine, teleschooling, and telework as part of any legislation that provides relief and recovery resources related to addressing the COVID-19 pandemic. In a letter sent to congressional leaders, the attorneys general urge Congress to:

New York City is committed to the goal of universal broadband, as described in the New York City Internet Master Plan (2020). In light of COVID-related health and safety guidance from New York City and public health officials, internet access in the home has become an even more essential service, required for safe access to health care, continuation of employment and schooling, and connections to family and friends.

Life has moved online during the coronavirus pandemic, and access to the internet has shone a new light on America's inequality crisis. Nearly 15% of American households do not have a home internet subscription, including dial-up, broadband or a cellular data plan, according to US Census estimates from 2018.

On May 12, House Democrats unveiled the Health and Economic Recovery Omnibus Emergency Solutions (HEROES) Act. "We are presenting a plan to do what is necessary to address the corona crisis," said House Speaker Nancy Pelosi as she announced the legislation.

With most of the US under orders to stay at home, many people are relying on their phones and computers to stay connected to the outside world through the internet.

Consumer Reports and Access Now are calling on the Federal Communications Commission to immediately expand broadband internet access for people struggling during the COVID-19 crisis. The organizations are filing petitions at the FCC signed by more than 63,000 concerned citizens. The petitions call for the FCC and Congress to support an expansion of the Lifeline program that provides a discount for broadband internet service to qualifying low-income consumers.

House Democratic leadership unveiled a $3 trillion relief package, the HEROES Act, that includes provisions to connect people to broadband. The legislation:

The switch to remote learning during the COVID-19 pandemic has exposed and exacerbated what equity advocates call the “digital divide,” the lack of access to a working device and a functioning, high-speed internet connection, explains Allison Socol, assistant director of P-12 policy at the advocacy nonprofit the Education Trust. Recent surveys conducted by the Education Trust asking parents about their experiences in this new norm have made it clear, Socol says, “that families are not experiencing this pandemic equally, and that low-income families and families of color in particular are mu