States Lag in Helping Low-Income Residents Secure Affordable Telephone Service

A national study released by CPA and Center for Media Education (CME) found that most states have done little to implement federal programs to subsidize costs of monthly phone bills and hook-up fees for low-income residents. Only two states (Maine and Tennessee) earned an A on the CME/CPA report card.

The Department of Commerce reports that 6.14 million households, or 5.9% percent of all Americans, do not have basic telephone service because, for most low-income Americans, it is prohibitively expensive. Lifeline and Link Up, part of the federal Universal Service program, are designed to make telephone service and installation more affordable for low-income consumers.

The Federal Communications Commission (FCC) makes $5.25 per month available to support poor households regardless of whether states offer matching funds to Lifeline and Link Up. The FCC encourages state participation with a two-to-one match: FCC will provide $7 per household per month if the state provides $3.50-for a total of $10.50 in support for low-income households.

The CME/CPA study found that many states have not fully implemented the Lifeline and Link Up programs. States are either failing to provide any state matching support or ensure that phone service carriers and eligible consumers are aware of and participating in the programs.

State Senator Willie Simmons (Flemming Fellow ’99) of Mississippi plans to address his state’s F grade in the study. Simmons will work with state agencies to identify money Mississippi can use as state matching funds for the Lifeline program. “If that’s not successful, I plan to introduce legislation to get this needed program off the ground,” says Simmons.

CME is a national non-profit organization dedicated to improving the quality of electronic media. The CME/CPA state-by-state report card is available on CPA’s Website:Report Card.