Over 1.1 million Ohio households have enrolled in the ACP – 23% of households across our state. Without congressional action, the program is projected to run out of funding in April.
WASHINGTON, D.C. – Today, Senators JD Vance (R-OH) Peter Welch (D-VT), Jacky Rosen (D-NV), and Kevin Cramer (R-ND), and U.S. Representatives Yvette D. Clarke (D-NY) and Brian Fitzpatrick (R-PA), led their colleagues in the bicameral, bipartisan introduction of the Affordable Connectivity Program Extension Act. This legislation would provide $7 billion for the Affordable Connectivity Program (ACP), which provides affordable high-speed internet options to qualifying households across the U.S. The program, which is administered by the Federal Communications Commission (FCC), is projected to be exhausted by April 2024 without additional funding.
Since its implementation, over 22.5 million households across the nation have utilized the program’s monthly discount of up to $30 for internet service, or up to $75 monthly for those living on Tribal lands. This program has been utilized by over 800,000 veterans, one million college students, 3.1 million families with a K-12 student receiving free or reduced-price lunch, and 5 million seniors across the United States. In Ohio alone, 1.1 million households have enrolled in the ACP – 23% of households across our state, the second highest household enrollment rate in the nation.
“Over a million deserving households in Ohio receive low-cost internet access thanks to the Affordable Connectivity Program,” said Senator Vance. “I’m proud to co-sponsor this bipartisan effort to ensure this successful program continues to deliver results,” said Senator Vance. “This is exactly the type of program my family would have benefited from if I was growing up in Ohio today. We must ensure low-income families all across Ohio, from our bustling cities to the most rural parts of Appalachia, aren’t cut off from the online banking, schooling, and connectivity services they need.”
“The Affordable Connectivity Program has helped close the digital divide by connecting over 25,000 Vermont households to lower-cost internet—an essential for working, learning, and staying connected to our communities. Access to high-speed internet isn’t a luxury anymore, it’s a necessity. That’s why it’s never been so important to avoid this funding cliff and extend the ACP,” said Senator Welch. “The ACP Extension Act will help ensure families, seniors, and workers in Vermont can continue to access this program, and in-turn continue to access high-speed, reliable broadband at an affordable rate. We’re going to keep working across the aisle and across the Capitol to deliver on this area of common ground agreement.”
The Affordable Connectivity Program Extension Act is supported by over 400 organizations, including Comcast, AT&T, Charter, US Telecom, NTCA (The Rural Broadband Association), INCOMPAS, WTA (Advocates for Rural Broadband), the Wireless Infrastructure Association, AARP, Communications Workers of America, Fiber Broadband Association, NCTA – The Internet & Television Association, and the AFL-CIO.
Learn more about the program at GetInternet.gov.
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