Disconnected: Over 54,000 Montanans May Lose Internet Very Soon

Have you ever listened to someone complain about an inconvenience and thought "They would be tough to be around in a survival situation?" I think about it with my son all the time. When he complains about what is for dinner. When he complains about being hot or cold. When he complains the internet speed is too slow. I always think "Imagine life without heat, food, or electricity." That would give you something to complain about.

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Imagine life without internet access. It is something that we take for granted. Everywhere you go, you can connect to the internet and gather information. In moments you can settle that argument about who sang the title track of your favorite album. Or order takeout for the whole family at the touch of a button.

Not every household in America can afford proper internet service. That is why the Affordable Connectivity Program was created. Making internet service easier for low-income families to afford.

The ACP provides a $30/month benefit for qualifying households to offset the cost of internet. For tribal households, the benefit is increased to $75/month.

According to Whistleout.com

There are many ways for households to qualify including:

• Household income less than 200% of federal poverty guidelines

• Participation in another federal assistance program such as SNAP or Medicaid

• Participation in free or reduced-price school lunch program

• Recipient of federal Pell Grant during current academic year

• Participation in certain Tribal programs

• Meeting eligibility for your current internet provider’s low-income program

Now, it appears that the ACP is running out of funds. The Federal Communications Commission is stopping all funding to ACP in May 2024.

Meaning 1 in 6 households will be affected by the deactivation of the program. For Montana, an estimated 54,148 households will lose affordable high-speed internet.

The program stopped accepting new households in February. The discounted internet service will end at the end of April.

There is another option to help offset internet costs slightly. Even though it is not as much as ACP. The FCC has another program called "Lifeline" that can help offset your cost starting at $9.25 off your bill.