Lifeline is a Universal Service Fund (USF) program designed in the mid-’80s to accomplish a straightforward task with clear-cut benefits. As part of USF reform, the FCC wants to make changes to Lifeline so the program encourages broadband adoption by low-income individuals. But will those changes mainly benefit telcos and service providers without provided broadband benefits to constituents?

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Joseph Miller, deputy director/senior policy director for the Media Technology Institute at the Joint Center for Political and Economic Studies states, “If your program only shows people how to go online and find information, this is purely consumption. You can’t generate as much progress as you would teaching them how to code, develop applications and do other things that generate an income. Or help them become entrepreneurs. It comes down to more than an adoption program. It’s creating a community business plan and showing how broadband is used in that plan.”

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