Program made possible by the Bipartisan Infrastructure Bill, which Hickenlooper helped author, and will offer high-speed internet for $30 a month to qualifying households
Washington, D.C. – Today, U.S. Senators John Hickenlooper and Michael Bennet applauded President Biden’s announcement of commitments from internet providers across the country that will lower high-speed internet costs for millions of American families through the Affordable Connectivity Program (ACP). Twenty internet providers, covering more than 80 percent of the U.S. population across urban, suburban, and rural areas, committed to either increase speeds or cut prices, in order to offer ACP-eligible households high-speed, high-quality internet plans for no more than $30/month, or $75/month on Tribal lands.
The ACP was created as part of the Bipartisan Infrastructure Bill, which Hickenlooper helped negotiate and write as part of the G-22 group of Senators. Hickenlooper also served on the G-22’s broadband working group which helped create the historic ACP. Today’s announcement builds upon the Emergency Broadband Benefit Program, which was enacted by legislation Bennet originally introduced in 2020 to provide a monthly subsidy to help eligible Americans connect online. Hickenlooper joined President Biden at the White House for today’s announcement.
“Access to affordable, high-speed internet means access to opportunity. To work, school, telehealth, family, friends, and other basic necessities,” said Hickenlooper. “In the last century we connected every household to electricity. In this century, thanks to our Bipartisan Infrastructure Bill, we’re going to connect every household to high-speed internet.”
“Access to high-speed broadband is a necessity of modern life. But access to broadband means little if families can’t afford it,” said Bennet. “That’s why we created the Affordable Connectivity Program in the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law to help low-income families purchase quality broadband. I welcome the partnership from the nation’s leading providers to lower costs and improve service, along with the Biden Administration’s steps to increase enrollment in this essential initiative.”
ACP is the largest high-speed internet affordability program in the nation’s history. Experts estimate that 48 million households—or nearly 40% of households in the country—qualify for the program. To be eligible for the program, the household must have an income at or below 200% of the Federal Poverty Level, a member of the household must participate in a specific federal assistance program, or meets eligibility criteria for an existing low-income internet program from a participating broadband provider.
Twenty companies have committed to offering all ACP-eligible families at least one high-speed plan for $30/month or less, with no additional fees and no data caps. Under this program, a high-speed plan is defined as one that offers download speeds of at least 100 Megabits per second everywhere that the provider’s infrastructure is capable of it. That’s usually fast enough for a typical family of four to work from home, do schoolwork, browse the web, and stream high-definition videos.
ACP-eligible households can visit www.getinternet.gov for details on how to sign-up for ACP and to find participating internet providers in their area.
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