by Sylvia C. Dodge
There was a time in our country when homes were not lit with electric lights, and when telephone lines did not exist to connect neighbor with neighbor. It took the funding and the programming of the federal government, aligned with state initiatives, to create universal access to those utilities.
The Internet has entered that same realm of universal need in our country, and perhaps one of the silver linings of the COVID-19 pandemic is the spotlight it has given to the need for stable broadband capacity for all Americans, no matter where they live or their level of affluence.
The pandemic made clear that for children to have access to at-home educational programming, their homes need reliable Internet service. For isolated people, high-speed broadband is necessary to provide access to healthcare services through telehealth options.
Two paths have been developed to bring broadband Internet access into all American homes. One is a build-out project. In Vermont, nine Communications Union Districts (CUDs) have taken on the challenge of stringing the fiber optic cable and building the infrastructure to bring the Internet to all the tiny villages and back roads in the state.
The second path to universal Internet access is government measures designed to make it affordable for all Americans. On January 1, a new program became available from the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) to do just that. It is called the Affordable Connectivity Program (ACP) and it replaces the Universal Broadband Benefit program initiated as a COVID-19 emergency relief measure.
“The response to the Universal Broadband Benefit proved what many knew to be true: the cost of high-speed internet is out of reach for too many of us,” FCC Chairwoman Jessica Rosenworcel said in a press release printed on the Connected Nation website.
Unfortunately, those who aren’t currently served by an Internet provider will have to wait until organizations like NEK Broadband become fully operational. NEK Broadband is the CUD that represents 55 Northeast Kingdom towns.
Low-income Vermonters who live in places currently served by an Internet provider, can apply to start saving on their Internet bills immediately by filing a simple application that can be completed online or printed and mailed.
ACP was created by the United States Congress in the bipartisan Infrastructure, Investment and Jobs Act, signed into law by President Joe Biden on November 15, 2021. ACP is designed to be a permanent program and was given an appropriation of $14.2-billion.
One member of a household can qualify for a $30 monthly reduction in internet costs ($75 per month for households residing on qualified tribal lands). The program also offers a one-time discount of $100 for a tablet, laptop, or desktop computer.
The easiest way to apply for the ACP benefit is to go to ACPBenefit.org. Qualification for the benefit is based on household income, or participation in one of several federal programs, including: Medicaid, Supplemental Nutritional Assistance Program (SNAP), the WIC Supplemental Nutrition Program, Lifeline, the free or reduced school lunch program, and being the recipient of a Pell Grant for college educational costs.
Once approved for the benefit, applicants organize the payment reduction directly through their service providers.
Comcast/Xfinity, Spectrum, and HughesNet all have created ACP information pages on their websites.
As of the third week in January, Consolidated Communications had not created a similar ACP page at their website, so people seeking to set up the ACP benefit with that telecommunications company will have to wait.
“Consolidated Communications is currently participating in the Universal Broadband Benefit program and will transition to the Affordable Connectivity Program in the coming months,” Shannon Sullivan, Consolidated Communications’ corporate communications manager, said in an email last week.
Even though ACP was put into effect by the FCC on January 1, people who received Internet bill reductions through the Emergency Broadband Benefit won’t be removed from that program until March 1. To learn more about the transition from the emergency program to ACP, go to fcc.gov/broadbandbenefit.
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