Biden announces program offering discounted internet service
President Joe Biden announced Monday that 20 internet companies have agreed to provide discounted service to people with low incomes, a program that could effectively make tens of millions of households eligible for free service through an already existing federal subsidy.
“High-speed internet is not a luxury any longer. It’s a necessity,” Biden said at a sun-drenched Rose Garden event with representatives from participating companies as well as members of Congress.
The $1 trillion infrastructure package passed by Congress last year included $14.2 billion for the Affordable Connectivity Program, which provides $30 monthly subsidies ($75 in tribal areas) on internet service for millions of lower-income households.
With the new commitment from internet providers, some 48 million households will be eligible for $30 monthly plans for 100 megabits per second — making internet service fully paid for with government assistance if they sign up with one of the providers participating in the program.
Biden noted that families of four earning about $55,000 annually — or those including someone eligible for Medicaid — will get a $30 monthly credit, meaning about 40% of Americans will qualify.
“This is a case where big business stepped up. We’re trying to get others to do the same thing,” Biden told the crowd to sustained applause. “It’s going to change peoples’ lives.”
Advocates were cautiously optimistic.
“It might be a gamechanger,” said Marty Newell, coordinator for Rural Broadband Policy at the Center for Rural Strategies in Whitesburg, Kentucky, where he said slow internet has plagued residents and businesses.