The FCC is stopping 9 companies from providing subsidized Internet to the poor
There is a great &quot;Tech Policy Podcast&quot; that covers this issue and why Ajit Pai made this decision. Very much worth a listen, I think he is much more reasonable and inline with HN than you might think. [1]<p>More specifically, are his 5 reasons for dissent on this [2]<p>Basically this program has NO budget so costs have spiraled &quot;From 2008 to 2012, Lifeline spending grew from $821 million to over $2.1 billion, an increase of over 160%.&quot;<p>It also subsidizes way too many households instead of helping those most in need. &quot;Roughly 42 million households are currently eligible for the Lifeline program. According to the U.S. Census Bureau, that is 34% of all households in the United States. Notwithstanding the decline in economic fortunes since 2009, that is too many. The federal government should not be subsidizing broadband service for one-third of our nation’s households. If we are going to expand the program to include broadband, Lifeline should target our neediest citizens. Yet the Commission proposes nothing of the sort.&quot;<p>[1]<a href="http:&#x2F;&#x2F;podcast.techfreedom.org&#x2F;e&#x2F;153-trump-picks-ajit-pai-for-fcc-chair&#x2F;" rel="nofollow">http:&#x2F;&#x2F;podcast.techfreedom.org&#x2F;e&#x2F;153-trump-picks-ajit-pai-fo...</a>
[2]<a href="https:&#x2F;&#x2F;apps.fcc.gov&#x2F;edocs_public&#x2F;attachmatch&#x2F;FCC-15-71A5.pdf" rel="nofollow">https:&#x2F;&#x2F;apps.fcc.gov&#x2F;edocs_public&#x2F;attachmatch&#x2F;FCC-15-71A5.pd...</a>