Bipartisan group of Congress members calls for ACP funding

A letter signed by 45 members of Congress this week, including 29 Democrats and 16 Republicans, is calling on House and Senate leadership to fund the Affordable Connectivity Program (ACP) in the next government appropriations bill.

The letter – led by Representatives Josh Gottheimer, a Democrat representing New Jersey, and Brian Fitzpatrick, a Republican representing Pennsylvania – cites "an urgent need to extend funding," given that current estimates show the ACP is projected to run out of funding by early 2024.

"Congress has a role in ensuring that high-speed and reliable broadband is accessible to every household, nationwide. We urge you to include full funding for the Affordable Connectivity Program (ACP) in the upcoming government appropriations bill to ensure that households can access the broadband they desperately need," wrote the signatories.

The letter is the largest bipartisan showing from Congress so far that there's interest in re-funding the program. A prior letter to the White House from a small group of Republican Senators also expressed support for continuing the program but suggested the Biden administration reappropriate unused COVID-19 relief funds to float the ACP while negotiations on reforming the program unfold.

Related:Rosenworcel warns Congress that not funding ACP will 'cut families off'

Whether the ACP will get funded through the government appropriations process is unclear. Negotiations on government spending are still underway in the divided Congress. Earlier this week, Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-NY) said he and House Speaker Kevin McCarthy (R-CA) would seek to pass a temporary spending bill to keep the government funded through early December and avert a shutdown on October 1. The House and Senate are out of session until September.

Other murmurings of support

The bipartisan letter of support for ACP follows news last week from the FCC that the program is officially providing broadband subsidies for over 20 million US households.

In a press release announcing the milestone, FCC Chairwoman Jessica Rosenworcel indicated the need for the program's continuation, but without calling on Congress for funding directly.

"Enrolling more than 20 million eligible households is no small feat—and wouldn't be possible without the partnership of organizations in rural, suburban, and urban communities across the country who are getting the word out about this powerful program. We've made too much progress in helping families get online to turn back now," she said.

Rosenworcel previously told Congress in a June hearing that ending the ACP "would undermine the biggest broadband affordability program this nation has ever created" and "would cut families off."

Related:FCC confirms actions taken to improve ACP

The program also received public support last week from local legislators in Alaska and Wisconsin. In an op ed, Forrest Dunbar, a Democratic state senator in Alaska, wrote that ending the ACP "would set us back years" in overcoming the broadband affordability gap in the US.

"But the ACP faces an existential threat that could eliminate Internet access for the over 18 million American households that rely on the program — its funding will run out sometime in 2024. Extending its funding to ensure that the program continues to exist should be an urgent priority for lawmakers regardless of partisanship," wrote Dunbar.

Another state legislator, Francesca Hong, a Democrat representing Wisconsin, urged DC lawmakers to find a solution as well: "Preserving the ACP is not just about ensuring internet access; it is about addressing the systemic inequities that have long disadvantaged communities of color. I urge the Biden Administration to once again lead on this issue like they have in the past, and work with Congress to find a common-sense solution that extends the program's funding," she wrote in an op-ed.

Related:Funding the ACP should be 'primary goal for policymakers' – report

Service providers are also starting to publicly call on Congress to fund the program. In a blog last week in which the company shared stories of ACP participants, Comcast also urged cooperation in Washington to keep the program alive.

"Unfortunately, the success of the ACP is causing an emerging dilemma. The $14 billion allocated to the FCC to provide vouchers to eligible households is likely to be exhausted early next year," wrote Broderick D. Johnson, Comcast's EVP of public policy and digital equity. "Congress and the Biden Administration must work together to ensure that the ACP is fully funded."