Good afternoon,

The Affordable Connectivity Fund (ACP), managed through the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) and providing Internet subsidies to 186,531 Connecticut households, will likely end next month. The ACP connects many of the students you serve, allowing them to get online for homework outside of school. Here are some quick takeaways for you as district leaders:

• What Is the ACP?: The program provides a reduction in broadband service bills by $30 per month to qualifying households (at or below 200% of the poverty level as well as NSLP, SNAP, and other program enrollments). The program also provides $100 off the purchase of a new computer.
• Families Contacted: Internet service providers that receive ACP funds to lower the net cost of family broadband subscriptions should have communicated to these households the timing of ACP ending and their connectivity options. Most will continue with low-cost options, though these may still be out of reach for some families. (Benchmark: 2% of household income — Alliance for Affordable Internet.)
• Affected Students: For obvious privacy reasons, the FCC is not releasing household-level data, but Education Superhighway has developed a decent rundown of subscribers by town to give you a sense of the totals in your district. Visit this page and click Connecticut on the map.
• State Assistance: The State at this point does not have a “bridge” program in place, though House Bill 5446 in the current legislative session does propose a plan to develop a Connecticut “Internet for All” program (See Section 8 beginning on page 18). If you have thoughts about the plan, feel free to leave testimony (written or in-person next Thursday).
• Notify Teachers: We encourage you to let teachers know that some students could lose their home broadband connections for the first time since the pandemic, when the Emergency Broadband Benefit (precursor to ACP) began. This could impact their ability to complete homework.
• Loaner Hotspots: If you have such units, you may see an increased demand.
• More Information: See this useful page from the FCC about the wind-down.

Feel free to reply and share any other resources or recommendations.

Best,

Doug