Subsidized Broadband for the Poor? Republicans Balk at FCC Plan
The proposal would expand a program that now underwrites phones for the poor to include Internet service.
An illustration shows US President Barack Obama's Twitter page on a laptop in Washington, DC on May 18, 2015.
Photographer: Mandel Ngan/Getty ImagesThis article is for subscribers only.
A U.S. regulator’s proposal to subsidize broadband Internet connections for the poor drew praise from Democrats and criticism from at least one Republican senator who cited fraud in the program.
Federal Communications Commission Chairman Tom Wheeler, a Democrat, asked fellow commissioners to broaden the $1.6 billion Lifeline program that now underwrites phone service for low-income individuals to include Internet service. The five-member commission is expected to vote on the plan June 18.