Title
Approve a letter to internet service providers in Monterey County requesting their participation in the California LifeLine Program.
Report
RECOMMENDATION:
It is recommended that the Board of Supervisors approve a letter to internet service providers in Monterey County requesting their participation in the California LifeLine Program.
SUMMARY
The California Public Utilities Commission (CPUC) California LifeLine Program provides discounted home phone and cell phone services to eligible households. The California LifeLine discounts help consumers lower the cost of their phone bills. Only one discount per household is allowed (except for teletypewriter users and for Deaf and Disabled Telecommunications Program participants). Each household must choose to get the discount either on a home phone or on a cell phone, but not on both.
Internet service providers are not required to participate in the program. This Board Report seeks approval of a letter from the Board of Supervisors to local internet service providers (ISPs) encouraging them to participate in California LifeLine program.
DISCUSSION
In Monterey County, similarly to the State as a whole, the California LifeLine program is significantly underutilized. Within the 30th Assembly District there are a total of 122,490 residents that currently qualify for this program, yet only 14% are enrolled. The 30th Assembly District includes the Salinas Valley (Salinas, Soledad, Gonzales, Greenfield and King Cities), all of San Benito County, the Cities of Gilroy and Morgan Hill in Santa Clara County, and the City of Watsonville in Santa Cruz County.
With the current pressures of the COVID-19 pandemic, many people working from home, and school children participating in distance learning, it is now more important than ever to ensure our most vulnerable populations have access to affordable and reliable broadband, and that California end the digital divide.
On its October 8, 2020 agenda, the California Publi...
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