FCC Record, Volume 27, No. 8, Pages 6653 to 6954, Supplement (February-March 2012) Page: 6,664
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of Tribal lands, Lifeline provides an additional $25 discount on monthly telephone charges, and Link Up
provides up to an additional $70 discount on the cost of commencing telephone service for low-income
households.29 These amounts may be supplemented by additional funding provided from state universal
service funds in some states.
15. Evidence suggests that Lifeline has been instrumental in increasing the availability of
quality voice service to low-income consumers. Indeed, many low-income consumers have stated in our
record that without a Lifeline subsidy, they would be unable to afford service.30 They have also noted the
hardships they would face without access to phone service.1 Telephone subscribership among low-
income Americans has grown significantly since the Lifeline program was initiated in 1984. Eighty
percent of low-income households had telephone service in 1984, compared to 95.4 percent of non-low-
income households.32 Since the inception of Lifeline, the gap between telephone penetration rates for
low-income and non-low-income households has narrowed from about 12 percent in 1984 to 4 percent in
2011.'3 Moreover, states that provide higher monthly Lifeline subsidies per household exhibited greater
growth in phone subscribership from 1997 to the present.34
16. There is also evidence that Lifeline has increased the penetration rate of voice service by
keeping low-income consumers connected to the network.35 As shown in Chart 1, the gap in penetration
(Continued from previous page)
vast majority of Lifeline subscribers receive support in the $8-10 range with an average amount of $9.25 in
September 20 11). In addition, ETCs may be reimbursed for the incremental costs of their provision of Toll
Limitation Service to eligible households. 47 C.F.R. 54.403(c).
29 See 47 C.F.R. 54.403(a)(4) (Lifeline); 54.41 1(a)(3) (Link Up).
30 The Commission received many letters from Lifeline subscribers, which have been placed in the record of this
proceeding, expressing their need for Lifeline as their only connection to family, health care providers, and work
opportunities. One disabled Lifeline subscriber in Tennessee describes her Lifeline service as exactly that - a
"lifeline": "I have a 17-year old daughter with Down Syndrome. We help each other everyday [sic]. I do the
thinking and she does what she can understand...[Lifeline] provides me a way to contact help if something happens
and my daughter doesn't understand what we might need help for... but she does understand if I tell her 'Mommy
needs the phone.' ... it gives me peace of mind to know I can always call for help."
31 Id"
32 See FEDERAL COMMUNICATIONS COMMISSION, INDUSTRY ANALYSIS AND TECHNOLOGY DIVISION, UNIVERSAL
SERVICE MONITORING REPORT at text accompanying table 3.2 (2011) (2011 MONITORING REPORT) (where '"low-
income" is defined as households making $9,999 or less), available at
http://transition.fcc.gov/Dailv Releases/Daily Business/201 l/dbl229/DOC-311775A1.pdf.
3 The Commission's telephone subscription penetration rate is based on the Census Bureau's Current Population
Survey (CPS). The specific questions asked in the CPS are: "Does this house, apartment, or mobile home have
telephone service from which you can both make and receive calls? Please include cell phones, regular phones, and
any other type of telephone." And, if the answer to the first question is "no," this is followed up with, "'Is there a
telephone elsewhere on which people in this household can be called?" If the answer to the first question is "yes,"
the household is counted as having a telephone "in unit." If the answer to either the first or second question is "yes,"
the household is counted as having a telephone "available." FEDERAL COMMUNICATIONS COMMISSION, WIRELINE
COMPETITION BUREAU, INDUSTRY ANALYSIS AND TECHNOLOGY DIVISION, TELEPHONE SUBSCRIBERSHIP IN THE
UNITED STATES at 2 (Dec. 2011) (201 1 WCB SUBSCRIBERSHTP REPORT).
34 See 2011 MONITORING REPORT at Chart 3.12.
3 See Letter from Matthew Brill, Counsel, Cricket, to Marlene H. Dortch, Secretary, Federal Communications
Commission,WC Dkt. No. 11-42 et al (filed Dec. 1, 2011) (noting that, in any given month, a substantially smaller
percentage of Cricket's Lifeline subscribers deactivate their accounts-as compared to Cricket's non-Lifeline
subscribers and arguing that "this disparity confirms that the Lifeline subsidy has a significant positive impact on the
(continued....)6664
Federal Communications Commission
FCC 12-11
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United States. Federal Communications Commission. FCC Record, Volume 27, No. 8, Pages 6653 to 6954, Supplement (February-March 2012), book, 2012; Washington D.C.. (https://digital.library.unt.edu/ark:/67531/metadc111169/m1/22/: accessed April 24, 2024), University of North Texas Libraries, UNT Digital Library, https://digital.library.unt.edu; crediting UNT Libraries Government Documents Department.