- After months of inaction from Congress, a Senate committee approved an amendment to provide the ACP $7B in fresh funding
- The money's not a long-term fix, it's just enough to fund the program through the end of the year
- The ACP will likely require tweaks in eligibility and benefit size to get the full greenlight from Congress
Just when we thought the Affordable Connectivity Program (ACP) was dead and gone, Congress decided to start CPR.
A Senate committee on Wednesday voted to provide the ACP with $7 billion in funding, tacked onto an amendment to the PLAN for Broadband Act.
There's still a long road ahead: the legislation must still pass the Senate and the House floors and be signed by the President before it can become law. So, no celebrating just yet, but it’s at least something given how the ACP saga has panned out in Congress.
A bevy of legislation was introduced earlier this year to try to keep the program afloat. But those bills went no where, leaving the program with an empty bank account and shuttered doors at the end of May.
“After weeks of deadlock, we finally have progress on the effort to keep internet access affordable for millions of seniors, veterans, families and students across America,” said Senator Peter Welch in a statement.
The Senate committee also approved $3 billion in Rip and Replace funding, which will go toward removing Huawei and ZTE equipment from U.S. communications networks. This funding was first introduced in the Spectrum and National Security Act – legislation that had been postponed for a markup.
Making broadband affordable
Prior to the program's expiration, the ACP allowed around 23 million households to save $30 per month on their internet bill.
Though it sounds like a lot, the proposed $7 billion infusion is not a long-term fix. If the ACP gets extended, the money would be just enough to last through the end of 2024, said Kathryn de Wit, director of Pew's Broadband Access Initiative. ISPs have tried to bridge the gap with their own ACP alternatives, “but that won’t last forever.”
“We’re hopeful that Republicans and Democrats in both chambers can figure out a path forward in the coming months on this critically important program,” she told Fierce.
Joe Kane, director of broadband and spectrum policy at ITIF, said while it’s good news that ACP is still on the agenda, he has doubts about “whether this amendment changes any of the fundamental political issues that have been holding back ACP renewal so far.”
“The plan needs Republican support so will likely need to have adjustments to eligibility and benefit size,” Kane said. “Those reforms could also make the funding last longer for those who need it most.”
Anyone at or below 200% of the federal poverty guidelines was eligible for ACP. Congress this spring proposed an amendment to the Federal Aviation Administration reauthorization bill to reduce ACP eligibility to 135%, but that didn’t fly.
The Federal Communications Commission has been optimistic that it can easily get the program up-and-running again once ACP is re-funded. But that could be easier said than done.
“At this point, there have likely been substantial changes to the previously enrolled population,” Kane said. People may have changed addresses, their household size or income, so it may be difficult to let them know the program is back in action.
"More work lies ahead, but the vote reignites the hope for millions of American households looking for consistency in what they pay for internet service every month,” de Wit concluded.
Find out about jobs in broadband construction and more on Broadband Nation.