[real-eyes] Fw: FYI
- From: "Reginald George" <sgeorge@xxxxxxxxx>
- To: <real-eyes@xxxxxxxxxxxxx>
- Date: Wed, 16 Sep 2009 07:17:19 -0500
Just in case y'all know somebody who might be able and benefit from this type
of assistance.
sagi
I'm writing to inform you about an important consumer-oriented
initiative, the "National Lifeline and Link Up Telephone Discount
Awareness Week," which takes place September 14 - 20, 2009. Various
state and local agencies throughout the country will be participating
with outreach activities and events. The "Lifeline" and "Link Up"
programs provide financial assistance to low-income consumers in
connecting a residential phone line and paying their monthly bill. The
programs have been active for years and are administered by the Federal
Communications Commission (FCC) and state public utility commissions.
However, those who provide direct assistance to low-income consumers may
be unfamiliar with the programs - at least half of eligible consumers
nationwide do not take advantage of this assistance.
"Lifeline" involves discounts on monthly charges for a primary
residential telephone line, including wireless service. "Link Up"
involves a discount on the cost of initiating the primary telephone
service for a residence, including the activation of a wireless phone
that serves as the primary residential telephone. The discounts are
available throughout the country, including an enhanced discount on
Tribal lands. In general, consumers at or below 135% of the federal
poverty guidelines, or who participate in one or more of a number of
other assistance programs, are eligible for Lifeline and Link Up.
To find out about the discounts available in your state and how to
apply, go to http://www.usac.org/li/low-income/apply-for-support.aspx.
Information on telephone subscribership in your state is available in
the FCC's recently released Telephone Subscribership Report at
http://hraunfoss.fcc.gov/edocs_public/attachmatch/DOC-292759A1.pdf. You
may be particularly interested in the state-by-state information
available in Tables 4 (Percentage of Households with a Telephone by
Income) and 7 (Percentage of Adults with a Telephone by Labor Force
Status).
We ask you to join us in raising awareness of these important programs
by posting information about Lifeline and Link Up in your offices,
distributing information on the programs to your staff and to the
consumers you serve, forwarding this information to other organizations
in your community, writing an article for a local paper that reaches
consumers, or linking to www.lifeline.gov. Several outreach tools to
assist you are available at http://www.naruc.org/lifeline/default.cfm.
For more information, please call us at 1-888-CALL-FCC, or access our
dedicated Lifeline and Link Up e-mail address at lifeline@xxxxxxxx
Thank you for your assistance in improving consumer access to these
important programs.
Sincerely,
Catherine W. Seidel
Chief, FCC Consumer and Governmental Affairs Bureau
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