SPRINGFIELD — Local activists, organizations and representatives of Western Massachusetts’ Congressional delegation are pushing for the federal government to extend a pandemic-era program that covers internet costs for more than 55,000 low-income residents in the region. We are requesting the government.
The program, called the Affordable Connections Program (ACP), recently stopped accepting new enrollments and is currently on track to run out of funding in April. The development could put homeowners in the state’s four westernmost counties at risk of losing work-critical services. , school and other necessities.
The program was launched in 2021 during the COVID-19 pandemic, when the importance of internet access became increasingly apparent, and subsidizes broadband access for low-income households. At least 23 million people nationwide are enrolled in the program, including 55,000 in Hampshire, Franklin, Hampden and Berkshire counties, according to data from the Universal Service Management Company, which administers ACP. ing.
Sonia Ramos, a member of the Digital Equity Coalition group who lives in Holyoke, described arriving in Massachusetts from Puerto Rico in 2020, just as the pandemic was beginning, and finding herself and her family homeless. She said her daughter also faced the possibility of becoming homeless. She can’t graduate from high school because she doesn’t have access to the internet. She likened her need for access to the Internet to a bird needing wind.
“Don’t cut our wind. We need to fly,” Ramos said. “If Congress does not act in favor of the ACP, we will be forced to make difficult decisions about whether we will earn our daily bread or eat an empty plate.”
Ramos and other advocates held a press conference Wednesday at the Springfield office of the affordable housing nonprofit Way Finders to advocate for the continuation of the ACP. Bea Dewberry, director of community building and engagement at Way Finders, says it’s important to consider the human impact when discussing concepts such as the “digital divide” of unequal internet access. said.
“Stop thinking of words like ‘digital divide’ as just this kind of random concept. It describes people,” Dewberry said. “These people not only want access to the internet, they want laptops and devices, and they want training on how to use those laptops and devices.”
More than 11,000 people in Hampshire and Franklin counties had applied for ACP membership as of the beginning of this year, according to data from the Universal Service Administrative Company.
Municipalities with the highest enrollment in both counties include Greenfield with 1,576, Easthampton with 1,408, Orange with 1,160 and Northampton with 851. In Holyoke alone, more than 5,200 people have enrolled in the program at this launch. According to the data, year.
Wednesday’s event was attended by representatives of Sens. Elizabeth Warren and Ed Markey, as well as Representatives Jim McGovern and Richard Neal, whose districts cover the entire western half of the Commonwealth. Earlier this week, Mr. Markey visited a library in eastern Massachusetts to express his strong support for continuing the program.
“Ending the Affordable Connectivity Program is a loser, a loser,” Markey said during the event. “It’s a loss to families, a loss to our economy, a loss to our democracy.”
Congress recently introduced the Affordable Connectivity Program Extension Act. This would provide $7 billion to continue funding the program for the remainder of this year. Although the bill has bipartisan support, with 24 co-sponsors split evenly between party lines, there is no guarantee it will pass.
Federal Communications Commission Chairman Jessica Rosenworcel wrote in a recent letter to Congress that without additional funding, ACP households “are at risk of losing the Internet service they rely on for jobs, school, health care, and more.” “You are exposed,” he warned.
Way Finders President and CEO Keith Fairey agreed, calling the grant program a “lifeline” for many in the community.
“This provides an affordable way to participate in the digital lives that many of us take for granted, whether it’s paying a bill online or working with a healthcare provider. . Get information from your child’s school. Work remotely. Or just connect with family and friends,” he said.
Kathy Bisbee, director of the Alliance for Digital Equity Group, said Wednesday that more needs to be done than just relying on Congress for further funding for the program. The alliance, based at Baystate Health, is a coalition of his 40 organizations in four western counties.
“We must work together here in Western Massachusetts to ensure that all residents have access to affordable and accessible internet,” Bisbee said. “The right to access the internet and connect with the world is no longer a luxury; it is a necessity to participate in our democracy.”
Alexander MacDougall can be reached at amacdougall@gazettenet.com.
