Due to a lack of additional Congressional funding, the FCC officially ended the Affordable Connectivity Program (ACP).
During the wind-down of the ACP, Chairwoman Rosenworcel sent monthly letters to Congress emphasizing the program’s importance and the need for additional funding. In a recent letter, she highlighted the nationwide necessity to support low-income families struggling to afford high-speed internet and detailed the Commission’s actions to mitigate the impact of the ACP’s conclusion on enrolled households.
“The Affordable Connectivity Program filled an important gap that provider low-income programs, state and local affordability programs, and the Lifeline program cannot fully address,” said Chairwoman Rosenworcel. “The Commission is available to provide any assistance Congress may need to support funding the ACP in the future and stands ready to resume the program if additional funding is provided.”
Agency wind-down measures have included: (1) encouraging ACP providers, for which participation in the ACP was voluntary, to develop low-income programs of their own and to provide their ACP subscribers information on their low-income programs or low-cost plans; (2) offering training and resources for state public utility commissions and agency ACP grantees and outreach partners to raise awareness of the Commission’s Lifeline program; (3) and reminding current Lifeline providers of their requirement to publicize the Lifeline program.
The Lifeline program offers a $9.25 monthly benefit on broadband service for eligible households. Although the Lifeline benefit may alleviate some financial pressure for certain ACP households, it is not a replacement for the ACP. Not all ACP households will qualify for Lifeline, and by statute, many ACP providers are not eligible to participate in the Lifeline program.
Some highlights on the Affordable Connectivity Program:
- Over 23 million households were enrolled in the ACP at the time the program stopped accepting new enrollments.
- The ACP served households in every county in the United States.
- The participation among households in Tribal areas increased by 136 percent, with approximately 330,000 Tribal subscribers enrolled in the program when the enrollment freeze took effect. It provided low-income households consistent connectivity.
- In response to the FCC’s winter 2023 agency survey, 68% of ACP households reported they had inconsistent connectivity or zero connectivity at all before ACP.
- Roughly 15 percent of all households in the program are from rural areas.
- According to a national survey, more than four million households with an active or former military member are enrolled in the ACP.
- Nearly half of ACP households are led by someone over the age of 50.
- Approximately 3.4 million households seeking to enroll in the ACP indicated participation in the National School Lunch or Breakfast Programs as one of the ways they qualify for the ACP.
