FCC’s Gomez Says ACP’s Demise ‘Penny Wise, Pound Foolish’
'The end of the ACP will undo the significant progress we have made toward closing the divide.'
WASHINGTON, May 31, 2024 – Democratic FCC Commissioner Anna Gomez said Friday that the shutdown of the Affordable Connectivity Program will undermine the goal of affordable, high-speed Internet for every American.
Gomez, in a statement noting Friday as the last day of the ACP, said adding $30 monthly discounts to the bills of millions of low-income Americans would generate demand for new networks to be built with the $42.25 billion in grant dollars from the Broadband Equity, Access, and Deployment program.
“The end of the ACP will undo the significant progress we have made toward closing the divide and harm millions of Americans,” Gomez said “Not only that, but it will have economic and competitive consequences for our country if we fail to maximize the $42.5 billion investment we’ve made in broadband infrastructure through the BEAD program. It is, as they say, penny wise and pound foolish.”
The White House today issued a statement calling on Congress to extend funding for the ACP.
Ted Hearn
In a press release, the White House praised 15 Internet Service Providers that served 10 million ACP enrollees for volunteering to offer plans at $30 or less a month to low-income households through 2024.
On the White House list were: Allo Fiber, altafiber, Hawaiian Telcom, Astound Broadband, AT&T, Comcast, Cox, IdeaTek, Mediacom, MLGC, Altice/Optimum, Charter/Spectrum, Starry, Verizon, and Vermont Telephone Co.
