In a new program from the Federal Communications Commission, qualifying households are eligible for a temporary monthly discount on their broadband internet service; in most cases, the discount is $50/month. The income guidelines are low, so only a fraction of Americans will qualify, but if someone you know is eligible, that $50/month could make a huge difference to their family.
You may qualify if any one of the following applies to you:
- People with incomes below 135% of the poverty level. That’s about $17,000/year for a single person, or $35,000/year for a family of four.
- You are eligible for Food Assistance, Medicaid, Free or Reduced School Lunch, or Lifeline benefits.
- You participate in certain tribal programs, including BIA General Assistance, Tribal Head Start, Tribal TANF, or emergency food distribution.
- You are a student receiving a Pell Grant.
- Your household has lost significant amount of income due to pandemic-related job loss. NOTE: this qualification includes people with incomes well above the 135% poverty threshold.
The funding is temporary, and will end when the program runs out of money OR six months after the US Department of Health and Human Services declares an end to the COVID public health emergency. Apply now in order to take advantage of this opportunity.
To Apply: Go to https://getemergencybroadband.org/ where you will find all the details and the on-line application form.
Source: Consumer Action, which offers this information in Spanish.
The Federal Communications Commission offers pdf fact sheets in Arabic, Amharic, Burmese, Chinese-Traditional, Chinese-Simplified, French, Haitian Creole, Korean, Portuguese, Russian, Somali, Tagalog, and Vietnamese as part of their outreach toolkit.
