Assembly member Tasha Boerner (D-Encinitas) introduced a bill that would mandate internet service providers to make affordable plans available to California residents.
The bill, AB 353, is meant to aid the nearly 3 million California households that lost federal support through the Affordable Connectivity Program when the benefit ended last year.
A 2024 survey by the Benton Institute suggested that roughly half of low-income households have unstable internet connections and difficulty affording their monthly internet service.
“We are talking about kids not being able to do homework at home, parents having to go to libraries to apply for jobs, and people not having access to do basic things, like telehealth,” Boerner said in a news release.
The total impact of ACP subsidies to California was nearly $1.7 billion over the life of the program. In addition, 38% of all households enrolled in the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program were enrolled in ACP.