Lifeline (FCC program)

Last updated

Lifeline is the Federal Communications Commission's program, established in 1985, intended to make communications services more affordable for low-income consumers. Lifeline provides subscribers a discount on monthly telephone service purchased from participating providers in the marketplace. Subscribers can also purchase discounted broadband internet from participating providers. [1] [2] [3] [4] [5]

Contents

Overview

Lifeline provides a discount on monthly service of $9.25 per month [1] for eligible low-income subscribers. Subscribers may receive a Lifeline discount on either a wireline or a wireless service, but may not receive a discount on both services at the same time. Lifeline also supports broadband and broadband-voice bundles. FCC rules prohibit more than one Lifeline service per household. [1]

Lifeline is available to eligible low-income subscribers in every state, territory, commonwealth, and on tribal lands. [1]

To participate in the program, subscribers must either have an income that is at or below 135% of the federal poverty guidelines, or participate in certain assistance programs. [1] In April 2019, the FCC office of Inspector General issued an advisory alert to carriers and beneficiaries in connection to fraudulent enrollment practices. [2]

History

The FCC established the Lifeline program in 1984 during the Ronald Reagan Administration to provide qualified individuals with discounts on phone service. [6] In 1997, the FCC broadened the scope of the program under the 1997 Universal Service Order to make Lifeline more affordable for low-income households by raising the federal support amount. [7] Due to the rise of cell phones, the FCC made more changes in 2005 (under the George W. Bush Administration) so that wireless phone service providers could offer free cell phone service using Lifeline benefits. [8]

Lifeline has been controversial due to rampant fraud and abuse of the program. [9] On January 31, 2012, the FCC ordered a Lifeline Reform Order [10] to require Lifeline subscribers to provide income documentation. This change led to savings of over $213 million in 2012. [11]

The FCC under Ajit Pai opened an inquiry in 2017 about excluding wireless resellers, eliminating support of standalone broadband service, and capping the budget of Lifeline. Critics said these changes would leave millions of poor Americans without phone service. They also say that although 74% of Lifeline subscribers have access to broadband on their smartphone or computer, [12] it is critical to also provide access to standalone broadband service in their homes due to data caps and the usability differences between smartphones and computers.

In August 2019, FCC Chairman Pai proposed further administrative changes to root out fraud and abuse of the program. The biggest change in this proposal is to put in additional requirements to ensure that carriers enrolling subscribers can verify that the person is still living. [13] This change will also prohibit carriers from paying commissions to employees or agencies based on the number of customers they enroll. [13] As of August 2019, Pai's latest Lifeline proposal had not been made public, but the FCC said that the lifeline identity verifier would be rolled out in the US by the end of 2019. [13]

The Lifeline National Eligibility Verifier () is a centralized system that determines whether subscribers are eligible for Lifeline. USAC manages the National Verifier and its customer service department, the Lifeline Support Center. During the National Verifier soft launch period, service providers will receive access to the National Verifier pre-production (test) environment to test out the system functionalities with mock data. At soft launch, service providers may help consumers apply to the Lifeline Program through the National Verifier service provider portal or by mail. At the National Verifier full (hard) launch, service providers must use the National Verifier when helping consumers apply to the Lifeline Program. Consumers may also apply to the Lifeline Program on their own, through the National Verifier consumer portal or by mail. Please note that any NLAD Dispute Resolution request sent two business days before full (hard) launch will be rejected. If an NLAD transaction requires a dispute resolution within this window, it will need to be performed on or after full (hard) launch.

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Wireless broadband</span> Telecommunications technology

Wireless broadband is a telecommunications technology that provides high-speed wireless Internet access or computer networking access over a wide area. The term encompasses both fixed and mobile broadband.

In telecommunications, a customer-premises equipment or customer-provided equipment (CPE) is any terminal and associated equipment located at a subscriber's premises and connected with a carrier's telecommunication circuit at the demarcation point ("demarc"). The demarc is a point established in a building or complex to separate customer equipment from the equipment located in either the distribution infrastructure or central office of the communications service provider.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Mobile phone spam</span> Unwanted communication through a mobile phone

Mobile phone spam is a form of spam, directed at the text messaging or other communications services of mobile phones or smartphones. As the popularity of mobile phones surged in the early 2000s, frequent users of text messaging began to see an increase in the number of unsolicited commercial advertisements being sent to their telephones through text messaging. This can be particularly annoying for the recipient because, unlike in email, some recipients may be charged a fee for every message received, including spam. Mobile phone spam is generally less pervasive than email spam, where in 2010 around 90% of email is spam. The amount of mobile spam varies widely from region to region. In North America, mobile spam steadily increased after 2008 and accounted for half of all mobile phone traffic by 2019. In parts of Asia up to 30% of messages were spam in 2012.

Local number portability (LNP) for fixed lines, and full mobile number portability (FMNP) for mobile phone lines, refers to the ability of a "customer of record" of an existing fixed-line or mobile telephone number assigned by a local exchange carrier (LEC) to reassign the number to another carrier, move it to another location, or change the type of service. In most cases, there are limitations to transferability with regards to geography, service area coverage, and technology. Location Portability and Service Portability are not consistently defined or deployed in the telecommunication industry.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Fido (wireless carrier)</span> Cellular Carrier

Fido Solutions Inc. is a Canadian mobile network operator owned by Rogers Communications. Since its acquisition by Rogers in 2004, it has operated as a Mobile virtual network operator (MVNO) using the Rogers Wireless network.

A data cap, often erroneously referred to as a bandwidth cap, is an artificial restriction imposed on the transfer of data over a network. In particular, it refers to policies imposed by an internet service provider in order to limit customers' usage of their services; typically, exceeding a data cap would require the subscriber to pay additional fees based on whether they have exceeded this limit. Implementation of a data cap is sometimes termed a fair access policy, fair usage policy, or usage-based billing by ISPs.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Xfinity</span> American cable provider

Comcast Cable Communications, LLC, doing business as Xfinity, is an American telecommunications business segment and division of Comcast Corporation. It is used to market consumer cable television, internet, telephone, and wireless services provided by the company. The brand was first introduced in 2010; prior to that, these services were marketed primarily under the Comcast name.

The Universal Service Fund (USF) is a system of telecommunications subsidies and fees managed by the United States Federal Communications Commission (FCC) intended to promote universal access to telecommunications services in the United States. The FCC established the fund in 1997 in compliance with the Telecommunications Act of 1996. The FCC is a government agency that implements and enforces telecommunications regulations across the U.S. and its territories. The Universal Service Fund's budget ranges from $5–8 billion per year depending on the needs of the telecommunications providers. These needs include the cost to maintain the hardware needed for their services and the services themselves. The total 2019 proposed budget for the USF was $8.4 billion. The budget is revised quarterly allowing the service providers to accurately estimate their costs. As of 2019, roughly 60% of the USF budget was put towards “high-cost” areas, 19% went to libraries and schools, 13% was for low income areas, and 8% was for rural health care. In 2019 the rate for the USF budget was 24.4% of a telecom company's interstate and international end-user revenues.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Internet in the United States</span> Overview of the Internet in the United States of America

The Internet in the United States grew out of the ARPANET, a network sponsored by the Advanced Research Projects Agency of the U.S. Department of Defense during the 1960s. The Internet in the United States in turn provided the foundation for the worldwide Internet of today.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Julius Genachowski</span> American lawyer and businessman

Julius Genachowski is an American lawyer and businessman. He became the Federal Communications Commission Chairman on June 29, 2009. On March 22, 2013, he announced he would be leaving the FCC in the coming weeks. On January 6, 2014, it was announced that Genachowski had joined The Carlyle Group. He transitioned from Partner and Managing Director to Senior Advisor in early 2024.

Connecting America: The National Broadband Plan is a Federal Communications Commission (FCC) plan to improve Internet access in the United States. The FCC was directed to create the plan by the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009, and unveiled its plan on March 16, 2010.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Arlene Harris (inventor)</span> American inventor

Arlene Joy Harris is an entrepreneur, inventor, investor, and policy advocate in the telecommunications industry. She is the president and co-founder of Dyna LLC, an incubator for start-up and early-stage organizations historically in the wireless technology field. Harris is widely recognized as a pioneer in mobile and wireless enterprise and an innovator of consumer products and services. In May 2007, she became the first female inductee of the Wireless Hall of Fame, and was named to the Consumer Technology Hall of Fame in 2017.

TruConnect, formally known as TruConnect Mobile, is an American mobile virtual network operator (MVNO) that sells mobile hotspots and smartphones, 3G/4G LTE mobile data plans and prepaid cell phone talk & text plans on T-Mobile’s network. TruConnect was the first prepaid broadband provider in the U.S. to offer a pay-as-you-go, portable Wi-Fi service plans. The only Lifeline provider (ETC) headquartered in Los Angeles, CA. TruConnect uses either Sprint or T-Mobile's network depending on location.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Jessica Rosenworcel</span> American lawyer (born 1971)

Jessica Rosenworcel is an American attorney serving as a member and chairwoman of the Federal Communications Commission (FCC). She originally served on the FCC from May 11, 2012, to January 3, 2017, and was confirmed by the Senate for an additional term on August 3, 2017. She was named to serve as acting chairwoman in January 2021 and designated permanent chairwoman in October 2021. She was confirmed for another term by the Senate in December 2021. Rosenworcel's current term runs for five years beginning July 1, 2020.

Q Link Wireless is an American telecommunications company based in Dania, Florida that provides free wireless services to Lifeline eligible consumers. The company also offers prepaid mobile phone services including wireless voice, messaging, and data services under the Hello Mobile brand.

The Wireless Infrastructure Association (WIA), formerly known as PCIA, is an American trade association for wireless providers and companies that build cell phone towers, rooftop wireless sites, and other facilities that transmit wireless communication signals. The Washington Post described the industry as "the people who build all those cell towers so you can actually make those calls, download that data." These technologies are collectively referred to as "wireless telecommunications infrastructure."

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Zero-rating</span> Internet access under certain conditions

Zero-rating is the practice of providing Internet access without financial cost under certain conditions, such as by permitting access to only certain websites or by subsidizing the service with advertising or by exempting certain websites from the data allowance.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">TAG Mobile</span>

TAG Mobile is a wireless telecommunications provider based in Dallas, Texas, United States. It is an Eligible Telecommunications Carrier (ETC) wireless and facilities provider in 19 states of the United States. The TAG Mobile ‘Lifeline Program’ provides cell phones to those in the low-income category and also individuals on government assistance programs in the US.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Affordable Connectivity Program</span> United States government-sponsored program

The Affordable Connectivity Program (ACP) is a United States government-sponsored program that aims to provide wireless internet for low-income households. Several companies have signed on to participate in the program, including Verizon Communications, Frontier Communications, T-Mobile, Spectrum, Cox, AT&T, Xfinity, Optimum and Comcast. The program is administered by the Federal Communications Commission. The Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act provides $14.2 billion in funding for $30 subsidies for those with low incomes, and $75 subsidies on tribal lands.

References

  1. 1 2 3 4 5 "Lifeline Support for Affordable Communications". Federal Communications Commission. April 2019.PD-icon.svg This article incorporates text from this source, which is in the public domain .
  2. 1 2 "FCC Inspector General issues fraud advisory on Lifeline program". KFVS 12. 17 April 2019.
  3. ↑ Fuentes, Julio (2 April 2019). "How we can expand mobile phone services to low-income Floridians - Opinion". Sun-Sentinel.com.
  4. ↑ Brodkin, Jon (29 March 2019). "Ajit Pai wants to cap spending on broadband for poor people and rural areas". Ars Technica.
  5. ↑ Cynthia (29 July 2023). "Lifeline Cell Phone Service Providers". Free Government Phone Guide. Archived from the original on 6 August 2023. Retrieved 29 July 2023.
  6. ↑ "Lifeline Program for Low-Income Consumers". FCC. 27 January 2012.
  7. ↑ "The Lifeline Program Through The Years: From Origins To The Present". CBS Miami.
  8. ↑ "About the Lifeline Program". QLink Wireless.
  9. ↑ Snider, Mike. "The FCC continues fight against fraud and abuse of Lifeline low-income subsidies". USA Today. Retrieved 17 September 2020.
  10. ↑ "FCC Reforms, Modernizes Lifeline Program for Low-Income Americans". Fcc.org. 6 February 2012.
  11. ↑ Whitney, Lance (12 February 2013). "Cell phone subsidies claimed by many who can't prove eligibility". CNET.
  12. ↑ "Lifeline Subscribership by Service Type (Broadband Uptake)" (PDF).
  13. 1 2 3 Reardon, Marguerite (19 August 2019). "FCC's Pai targets Lifeline fraudsters, but doesn't propose a funding cap". CNET.
This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.