FCC Boss Takes Heat (Again) for Weakening Programs for the Poor The FCC's Lifeline program is a modest $10 per month subsidy low-income Americans receive to help pay for wireless, traditional phone, or broadband service. Launched under Reagan and expanded under Bush, the program has traditionally seen bipartisan support. But Trump FCC boss Ajit Pai has slowly but surely been dismantling the program while simultaneously somehow insisting he's a champion for closing the digital divide. Pai had already been under fire for making it harder for some ISPs to provide access to the poor.

Now Pai's under fire from all sides for a change to the program even companies like Verizon (Pai's former employer) doesn't actually want. Pai's latest proposal includes new rules that would prohibit MVNOs and resellers from participating in the program. That would force low-income users off of these carriers and on to "facilities-based broadband" providers, or only carriers that build and operate their own networks. Pai's justification for the change is that it will somehow boost investment into broadband networks. "We believe this proposal would do more than the current reimbursement structure to encourage access to quality, affordable broadband service for low-income Americans," the FCC said in its justification of the changes. "In particular, Lifeline support can serve to increase the ability to pay for services of low-income households. Such an increase can thereby improve the business case for deploying facilities to serve low-income households." But consumer advocates and regulatory agencies believe that the changes are simply part of a larger effort to slowly but surely scale back the program, and would make things unnecessarily more difficult on the poor. "Eliminating non-facilities based carriers would deny a majority of Lifeline consumers in New York the use of their preferred carrier and would eviscerate choice and competition in the low-income communications marketplace," the New York Public Service Commission wrote to the FCC. Amusingly, even the incumbent carriers Pai goes out of his way to coddle don't think Pai's latest idea is a particularly good one. Several of them actually went out of their way to point out Pai's proposal won't accomplish what it says it will in terms of driving additional deployment. "The proposed elimination of resellers from the Lifeline program would not materially further the deployment of broadband infrastructure, because revenue from resellers already contributes to facilities-based carriers' deployment of broadband facilities," said US Telecom, a lobbying group spearheaded by AT&T. "The proposed exclusion of resellers from the Lifeline program would be highly disruptive to existing Lifeline beneficiaries and is at odds with the Commission's goal of supporting affordable voice telephony and high-speed broadband for low-income households," Verizon added. That is, in case you missed it, consumer advocates and giant ISPs doing something they rarely do: agreeing. In this case, agreeing that Pai's attempts to dismantle programs that help bring broadband to the poor won't help drive better broadband to market, and will only hurt the nation's low-income communities trying to bridge the digital divide Pai breathlessly claims to be so concerned about. That is, in case you missed it, consumer advocatesgiant ISPs doing something they rarely do: agreeing. In this case, agreeing that Pai's attempts to dismantle programs that help bring broadband to the poor won't help drive better broadband to market, and will only hurt the nation's low-income communities trying to bridge the digital divide Pai breathlessly claims to be so concerned about.







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Most recommended from 38 comments

catbrat90

join:2018-02-21

Cincinnati, OH 24 recommendations catbrat90 Member I am not surprised I am not surprised it seems like the republican party steals from the poor, retired, and disabled to fund the tax cuts and entitlements for fortune 500 companies.

cb14

join:2013-02-04

Miami Beach, FL 13 recommendations cb14 Member Anyone surprised? We live in an era where Reagan and Bush look like socialists and Nixon as a far left tree hugger, not even mentioned Eisenhower with his tax the rich policies.

C0deZer0

Oc'D To Rhythm And Police

Premium Member

join:2001-10-03

Tempe, AZ 121.4 9.8

8 recommendations C0deZer0 Premium Member How badly do you have to screw up...



If there was a pop culture thesaurus, this punchable Twit's face would be put as the poster child for delusional. For even your former, and likely future, employer to be pissed off at you?If there was a pop culture thesaurus, this punchable Twit's face would be put as the poster child for delusional.

Red Hazard

Premium Member

join:2012-07-21

O Fallon, IL 5 recommendations Red Hazard Premium Member Pai Pai's elevator does not stop on all floors. BlueSim

join:2018-02-05

Vancouver, WA 5 recommendations BlueSim Member Proposed Unplugging of Lifeline is a Disconnected Call for Everyone



One slight proofreading note; the subsidy is actually $9.25/mo.:

»www.fcc.gov/general/life ··· onsumers



Take, for example, AT&T, that sells Lifeline service to eligible recipients for $15.74/mo.:

»www.att.com/ecms/dam/att ··· hure.pdf



Compare this to Airvoice, which resells AT&T service and offers Lifeline to eligible recipients for $0/mo.:

»www.feelsafewireless.com/faq



I can appreciate that enforcement and verification actions are being taken more seriously to make sure it's a program of last resort for those that literally have no other option, but removing the best options for both the program administrators and program recipients is the worst way to go about it. MVNOs are best for the Lifeline program by their very nature since they resell service usually for a lower price to everyone, with probably lower overhead.One slight proofreading note; the subsidy is actually $9.25/mo.:Take, for example, AT&T, that sells Lifeline service to eligible recipients for $15.74/mo.:Compare this to Airvoice, which resells AT&T service and offers Lifeline to eligible recipients for $0/mo.:I can appreciate that enforcement and verification actions are being taken more seriously to make sure it's a program of last resort for those that literally have no other option, but removing the best options for both the program administrators and program recipients is the worst way to go about it. catbrat90

join:2018-02-21

Cincinnati, OH 3 edits 4 recommendations catbrat90 Member Not to mention this is very anti competitive Not to mention this is very anti competitive making it where only wireless network operators with cellular towers can get government funds for the lifeline service program and not MVNO's/resellers. This is a gift to the four national wireless carriers in the United States since they usually charge higher rates than MVNO's. This seems to be another entitlement being given to fortune 500 companies. We will not hear any conservatives complain about this move since it is okay in their mind to give unlimited amounts of welfare/entitlements to the wealthy and fortune 500 companies just not the poor.