Federal Benefit Helping , Low-Income Households , Afford Internet Coming to an End.<br />CNN reports that next month, low-income <br />Americans face a crisis that threatens millions <br />of households with economic distress.<br />The United States government says that <br />it can only pay about half of what it owes <br />on a popular federal benefits program.<br />The Federal Communications Commission (FCC) announcement <br />represents the first tangible impact of Congress' failure <br />to extend the Affordable Connectivity Program (ACP).<br />The pandemic-era benefit provides <br />monthly discounts on internet service <br />for over 23 million households in the U.S.<br />As a result of dwindling funds, <br />April will be the last month <br />households can receive full benefits. .<br />In May, ACP will only be able to <br />provide 46% of the normal benefit <br />payments before ending entirely in June.<br />The end of the program means that millions of <br />people will have to choose between paying <br />for internet, housing and food.<br />According to the FCC, Internet service providers (ISPs) <br />could decide to close the gap for millions of households <br />that will be impacted by the program coming to an end.<br />We encourage providers to <br />take efforts to keep consumers <br />connected at this critical time, FCC statement, via CNN.<br />The FCC went on to add that ISPs could offer discounts, low-cost <br />internet plans or take other measures to ensure that service is <br />not interrupted for millions of low-income Americans.
