Your Money, the Government and Broadband for the Poor.

Broadband for the Poor.

It may not surprise you to learn that the government is going to take more money from you when you pay your cell phone bill. The FCC is now proposing that an extra $25 million in fees be added to your cell phone bill in order to give low-cost broadband service to the poor. Now $25 million may not sound like much in this era of multi-trillion dollar deficits, but it is worth noting how we have gotten here.

Originally we were told that every home should have a dial tone in their so they can call for help in case of emergency. This was all well and good since everybody should have access to emergency services, but from there it went to everyone should have basic phone service. Then the latest innovation came along that everyone should have basic cell phone service and yes you are paying for cell phones for the poor. Now the FCC is telling us that basic broadband service is becoming a right as well.

Another fact that you will not find hard to believe is that this program in 2008 cost about $772 million to operate, but by 2011 it had swelled to $1.6 billion. The fund provides the money for these services is also open-ended, which means that no matter how large it grows all the fees are passed on to you. Adding to this misery is an additional fact and that is that the program is notoriously easy to defraud.

As an example the number of so-called Lifeline receivers in Louisiana grew to 626,000 in 2011, which is a massive jump from the just 38,000 recipients in 2008. The problem is that depending on the state, anywhere from 12% to 50% of the recipients are not eligible for the program in the first place. The penalty right now for being caught gaming the system by having both a home line and a cell phone results in little more than a letter from the program asking you whether you want to keep your home service or your cell phone service.

Of course the FCC is implementing a new database that is said to be going to save $2 billion a year by detecting duplicate accounts. Geez I wonder how much we would’ve saved if we hadn’t allowed it to get this far in the first place.

Oh and at 25 million mentioned earlier that will be added to your cell phone bill, that’s just for testing. Can you imagine what this amount will grow to once people figure out they can get free broadband in their home?

Just thought you would like to know what you’re actually paying for in that cell phone and aircard bill.

Tagged As: Broadband for the Poor