The Federal Communications Commission announced that over one million people in one week signed up for the Emergency Broadband Benefit (EBB) program, opened on May 12 by the Federal Communications Commission as part of the emergency COVID-19 response by the federal government. MediaJustice released a new website EBBhelp.org to aid potential applicants considering applying for the EBB program that provides a direct payment by the government towards internet bills of up to $50 (or $75 on Tribal Lands) per month for eligible households. The program is temporary and will last until the $3.2 billion fund runs out. MediaJustice’s Brandon Forester, national organizer for internet rights and platform accountability, explains in Law360.
“The Emergency Broadband Benefit Program has the potential to help millions of families, too often people of color and other communities who have been historically divested from, get connected online and have access to everything the internet makes possible and is necessary for today. The high cost of high-quality internet service has posed a persistent barrier that keeps lower-income families from the resources they need to work, live and learn.”
Brandon Forester via Law360
