- The Affordable Connectivity Program allows low-income households to access the Internet.
- When federal programs run out of money after April, millions of people could lose internet access.
- An FCC official told CNN that the popular bipartisan program will end “because of politics, not policy.”
Millions of Americans are at risk of losing internet access if a critical government program runs out of funding next month.
The Affordable Connectivity Program has been helping low-income families get internet access since it was launched in 2021 by the Federal Communications Commission.The program provides eligible households with up to $30 in monthly discounts on internet service, while households on eligible tribal lands can receive up to $75 in rebates per month. According to the Federal Communications Commission.
But ACP is winding down. According to the FCC, it stopped accepting new applications and registrations in February, and the program’s last fully funded month will be April. U.S. lawmakers appear no closer to approving the Biden administration’s request for an additional $6 billion to continue the program.
If the program closes, it will further exacerbate the digital divide, leaving many older Americans and Those who live in rural areas and in the South do not have internet access.According to a survey of 801 ACP participants, among ACP users, 19% are in households with elderly people, 26% live in rural areas, and 41% live in the South From Comcast and Benenson Strategic Group. Almost half come from military families.
“As a result of political gamesmanship, approximately 60 million Americans will have to make tough choices between paying for internet or paying for food, rent and other utilities,” said Gigi Sohn, a former FCC official. The country’s digital divide.” CNN. “It’s embarrassing that a popular, bipartisan plan supported by nearly half of Congress will end over politics rather than policy.”
A survey shows strong bipartisan support for the ACP, with 62% of Republicans, 78% of independents and 96% of Democrats supporting the plan Public Opinion Strategies and RG Strategies surveyed 1,000 registered voters in December.
After the program ended, some ACP subscribers said they needed more work to stay online. Kamesha Scott is a 29-year-old St. Louis mother of two who works two jobs, one at a restaurant processing takeout orders and another delivering Amazon packages. She told CNN she plans to work overtime.
The closure of the ACP could have a disproportionate impact on tribal communities. “I’m not saying that maybe other people don’t need [ACP funding,] But they may not need it as much as reservations or tribal areas because we are severely below the poverty line,” said Brian DeMarco, general manager of Siyeh Communications, a Montana internet service provider. according to this Telecommunications industry news media Fierce Telecom.
ACP recipients account for about 15 percent of Siyeh Communications’ customer base, or about 2,000 subscribers on the Blackfeet reservation, according to the outlet. “Therefore, to eliminate ACP completely without considering [that], I think the government is very reckless. “
Federal Communications Commission, Thorne, Siyeh Communications and the White House did not immediately respond to immigration requests for comment.