FCC Program to provide discount on Internet services. | Stock Photo
FCC Program to provide discount on Internet services. | Stock Photo
Low-income Americans can now receive a discount on their Internet bill thanks to a COVID-19 relief program that the Federal Communications Commission rolled out.
Under the Emergency Broadband Benefit program, eligible households could receive up to $50 a month off their broadband service and $75 each month for households on qualifying Tribal lands as reported by NPR.
"The FCC just finalized the rules of the Emergency Broadband Benefit Program this week," Rep. Dan Caulkins (R-Decatur) wrote in a May 14 post on his Facebook page. "This will allow low-income Americans to receive a discount on their Internet services."
Those who qualify for the program could also receive a $100 discount to buy a laptop, desktop computer, or tablet. Eligible Americans include those who qualify for free and reduced-price school lunches, recipients of a federal Pell grant, those who experienced a significant income loss since the pandemic started, or meet the participating providers' criteria for either low-income or COVID-19 programs.
The $3.2 billion temporary pandemic subsidy was approved by Congress late last year, but it took several months for the FCC to iron out the program's rules.
The FCC also approved the Emergency Connectivity Fund, which sets aside nearly $7.2 billion to help schools and libraries provide the technology and capability to connect to the internet during the COVID-19 pandemic.
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