1.7 million Texas households are set to lose monthly internet subsidy as funding for the Affordable Connectivity Program is running out.
The $30 per month that Daisy Solis has saved off her internet bill for the past two years stretched a long way. Those dollars covered new shoes for her three, growing children; dinners at the Chick-fil-A that opened in her town of Peñitas in South Texas; and part of a higher-than-usual electricity bill. “It has really helped me in that I don’t have to stress out about the bill,” said Solis, 27. “$30 goes a long way.
Commentary — Texas Lege should invest in broadband, water The program’s termination will disproportionately impact South Texas, where counties along the Texas-Mexico border had higher than average rates of participation. Overall, 1 in 7 Texans used the program. And in some border counties, including Hidalgo County, about half of residents used the subsidy, according to data from the Federal Communications Commission.
BiblioTech plans tech literacy classes as Bexar bids to improve online access “We know that nearly half of ACP households are led by someone over the age of 50,” she wrote. “The ACP and the broadband service it supports is ‘need to have’ for many seniors, who depend on the program for managing their health and maintaining access to their medical teams.
Suburban Bexar County residents could get faster internet Large internet providers such as Comcast said they will continue to support low-income customers with an affordable plan. Comcast offers eligible customers a plan called internet essentials for $9.95 and a slightly higher-speed plan for $29.95. For smaller providers in rural Texas, though, a low-cost plan is not financially feasible without government support.
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