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Number of free government cell phone customers drops by two million in last three years

February 7, 2021

Nine million Americans have access to a free government cell phone or data plan thanks to the Lifeline program. That may sound like a huge number, but the simple fact is the program assisted nearly eleven million low-income Americans as recently as 2017. But even that number looks small when compared to 2012 when the number of free government cell phone customers crested at 17.6 million.

In those heady days, the Lifeline program had a healthy $2.1 billion budget, almost twice the number of dollars currently allocated.

But now we’ve reached a time in which 47 states have suffered severe declines in Lifeline subscribers. Oregon is up by 15% but the two remaining states, Indiana and Louisiana, have managed to stay even. Barely. Meanwhile, the District of Columbia is down by 49%, Mississippi has plunged by 37%, and Wyoming has tailed off by 36%.

states lifeline enrollment

What has caused the precipitous decline in the number of Lifeline customers? USAtoday.com says attributes it to a number of factors.

Our first thought is that the booming economy between 2017 and early 2020 meant more working Americans and that meant far fewer qualified for the program. But a little something called the coronavirus messes with that concept despite the V-shaped recovery we’ve experienced.

In 2012, reforms placed stricter controls on Lifeline funds and created a subscriber database to reduce duplicate accounts. These reforms, along with an improving economy, led to a decline in Lifeline subscribers.

Over the past two years, the FCC has been introducing a computer system that, by automatically confirming eligibility for Lifeline subscribers and taking the review process out of the hands of providers, was supposed to further prevent fraud. A year after the 2018 rollout, however, the screening system isn’t working as planned.

The computer system, called the National Eligibility Verifier, lacks access to key federal and state databases needed to check eligibility. Enrollment is down in several states where the verifier is fully launched. In Mississippi and Wyoming, for example, it has dropped by more than one-third since the rollout began.

In an emailed statement, FCC spokesman Mark Wigfield said the steep drop in subscribers shows the crackdown is working.

“Given the high rate of improper payments in the Lifeline program,” Wigfield wrote, “it makes sense that subscribership in the program is decreasing as more anti-fraud efforts take effect.”

Other well-intentioned proposals may backfire, causing the number of subscribers to plummet even further.

The Federal Communications Commission, the government agency that supervises the Lifeline program, wants to increase the amount of mobile data service providers must offer each month, and simultaneously reduce the number of free minutes. While this sounds an improvement that directly addresses the needs of our changing world, critics fear unintended results. To be specific, they know that data costs more than voice minutes and forcing service providers to offer more of the former and less of the latter will put a profit squeeze on participating companies. The “experts” fear that weaker companies will drop out of the program, offering consumers fewer choices.

Is this news black or white? Positive or negative? Good or bad?

Mark Twain, author of American classics such as Tom Sawyer, Huckleberry Finn, and many others, once observed, “There are three kinds of lies: lies, damned lies, and statistics.”

This may well be one of those cases.

States with the greatest change in Lifeline enrollment from March 2018 to June 2019

StateChange since 2018
Alabama19%
Alaska25%
American Samoa7%
Arizona-24%
Arkansas-6%
California-8%
Colorado-16%
Connecticut-18%
Delaware-32%
District of Columbia-49%
Florida-26%
Georgia-18%
Guam4%
Hawaii-9%
Idaho-5%
Illinois-15%
IndianaUnchanged
Iowa-15%
Kansas-20%
Kentucky-18%
LouisianaUnchanged
Maine-15%
Maryland-11%
Massachusetts-26%
Michigan-10%
Minnesota-16%
Mississippi-37%
Missouri-21%
Montana-16%
Nebraska-25%
Nevada-2%
New Hampshire-28%
New Jersey-2%
New Mexico2%
New York-4%
North Carolina-11%
North Dakota-12%
Ohio-7%
Oklahoma-5%
Oregon15%
Pennsylvania-14%
Puerto Rico-33%
Rhode Island-19%
South Carolina-10%
South Dakota-10%
Tennessee-18%
Texas-23%
Utah-29%
Vermont-29%
Virginia-19%
Washington-13%
West Virginia-10%
Wisconsin-14%
Wyoming-36%

SOURCE: A Center for Public Integrity analysis of USAC data.

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Comments

  1. Pamela Wilson says

    February 25, 2021 at 10:25 am

    That is because Trump moved many people from welfare to work. Now that Biden is the president the number of free government phone users will go up again.

    Reply
  2. Mansukhlal Gandhi says

    February 8, 2021 at 3:56 pm

    Free Phone is a Good Program and is Very Useful for Low income families and Service is also very good with all the current features.
    But in Decline, may be The main reasons are,
    1, The Phone is Free Phone But the instrument is not as Standard as compare to other paid phones of All
    Phone Companies.
    2, To buy any New phone in Exchange is very Expensive.
    3, The Fully Charged Battery works only for Very few hours in compare to other Regular Paid Phones and
    hence can’t Fully Depend on it.
    4, It comes only with Low GB and half is used in contact List and some for basic Apps. After that very less space is available and can’t save more space to use.
    I have a Free phone and I like it and use it since so many years, but satisfaction is less due to above Reasons, Because after every 6-8 Months, the phone becomes Dead and I have to order for New Phone and with pleasure, I get it.

    Thanking you,
    Mansukhlal Gandhi

    Reply
  3. RAY says

    February 8, 2021 at 3:09 pm

    YOU DO NOT GET ANY THING FREE FROM THE GOVERNMENT ITS JUST HAPPEN LOL

    Reply
  4. Carol says

    February 8, 2021 at 10:42 am

    I found the Lifeline program to be deceptive. If you have a landline, which I retain only so I can call 911 in an emergency and count on my call being answered rapidly and locally, and you apply for a lifeline discount, you have to formally give up your “free” cell phone. The government won’t help you with both a cellphone, which doesn’t guarantee 911 service, and a basic landline which does. The cell phone wasnt even free, just the SIM Card. You still had to buy a cellphone. This does not combat fraud. I only get a whopping $14/month discount on my ATT landline. I pay full price for a senior cellphone service

    Reply
    • Free Government Cell Phones says

      February 8, 2021 at 11:37 am

      There’s nothing deceptive about it, Carol. That’s one of the primary rules of the program. They don’t hide it away. They don’t disguise it. They state it very clearly.

      One other thing: All working cell phones are capable of calling 9-1-1. You don’t even need to have an account. Here’s how PureTalkUSA.com explains it:

      ___________________

      Thanks to the FCC, network providers must transmit an emergency call (911) regardless of whether you use their service or not. This means if your provider doesnt have coverage in that area, your phone will show that it has no service. But, another provider may offer coverage there and will transmit your 911 call for you. So, definitely give the call a try.

      You can also reach 911 with a cell phone that is not associated with a provider. This means anold phone can be a great emergency device, especially if youre unable to reach your primary phone. As long as it has battery power and can reach a signal, the phone can connect to 911. However, keep in mind this means your call cannot be returned because there isnt a number associated with it. So, if the call gets disconnected, you need to be the one to call back.

      Reply
      • RAY says

        February 8, 2021 at 3:07 pm

        I TRY TO GET ONE NEVER HAPPEN THEY JUST WILL NOT LET YOU HAVE ONE AND I AM ON DISABLE STILL COULD NOT GET

        Reply
        • Free Government Cell Phones says

          February 8, 2021 at 3:36 pm

          Just wondering, Ray, in which way you qualify for a free government cell phone.

          Reply
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