Affordable Connectivity Act helps millions across the country pay for their internet service.
Congress needs to renew it.
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In October, the Biden administration sent Congress a supplemental request for $6 billion to keep the program running, but it didn’t pass.
Rep. Salud Carbajal, D-California, is among 228 bipartisan co-sponsors of the Affordable Connectivity Program Extension Act of 2024, which would provide an additional $7 billion to keep the program afloat for another year. Among the co-sponsors are 22 Republicans, including Rep. Young Kim of California.
“You’ve got to have your head in the sand to not understand the value of what this is doing to enhance our economy, enhance the skills and opportunities for so many Americans,” Carbajal said. Allowing the program to expire, he said, “will undo the progress we’ve made in closing the digital divide. It would take us back to the dark ages.”
Letting the program lapse, even if it could be restarted later, would require additional spending on outreach and re-enrollment, Carbajal said. He also worries that people who benefit from it will feel a sense of whiplash and lose trust in the federal government.
This is one of those issues that helps people find a reason for voting. To help GOTV, we need to ask our Congressional representatives to support a bill renewing the Affordable Connectivity Act.
