New Broadband Benefit Can Provide up to $90 for internet Service

This morning, the FCC announced that on May 12, 2021, eligible households will be able to apply for the Emergency Broadband Benefit.
 
In announcing the official launch date, Acting Chairwoman Jessica Rosenworcel stated: 
 
“Families in every corner of the country have been struggling to get online throughout this pandemic. For those families, we now say help is around the corner. In less than two weeks, we will have a new way for disconnected Americans to access the internet to carry out their day-to-day life, so they can reach the virtual classroom, take advantage of telehealth, and seek new employment opportunities.” 
 
Beginning on May 12 households can apply in three ways: 
 
Contact your preferred participating broadband provider directly to learn about their application process.  
 
Go to GetEmergencyBroadband.org to apply online and to find participating providers near you. 
 
Call 833-511-0311 for a mail-in application, and return it along with proof of eligibility to: Emergency Broadband Support Center 
P.O. Box 7081  
London, KY 40742 
 
Materials that partners can use to help promote the Emergency Broadband Benefit to the communities they serve will be available soon on www.fcc.gov/emergency-broadband-benefit-outreach-toolkit.
 
Earlier this week the FCC hosted a webinar that provided an overview of the benefit, eligibility criteria, how to apply, and the FCC’s partner toolkit materials. If you missed the event live, a recording can be viewed online. 
 
Thank you for all your hard work and continued efforts to ensure that every eligible consumer knows about the program and how to sign up. 
 
 In addition to the FCC Emergency Broadband Benefit, Vermont has also authorized use of CRF monies to extend the Temporary Broadband Subsidy.  Eligible Vermonters may stack their benefits.  By that I mean, that the FCC benefit AND the TBS benefit may both be applied to an account.  The FCC benefit will be applied first, and then the TBS will be applied against any remaining balance.  This brings the total available benefit up to $90 per month.
 
Current Lifeline subscribers will be automatically enrolled in EBB, best we can tell.
 
When these applications go live, we will have buttons that link to the online applications available on the home page for the Department at publicservice.vermont.gov for both EBB and TBS.