Low Income Assistance Programs
Affordable Connectivity Program (ACP) – Effective December 31, 2021
Now available at Ziply Fiber!
The Affordable Connectivity Program is a newly created long-term FCC program to ensure families and households can afford the connections they need for work, school, health care and more. The Affordable Connectivity Program is replacing the Emergency Broadband Benefit Program effective December 31, 2021. Eligible households will get a discount of up to $30 per month towards eligible broadband plans, and up to $75 per month for households on qualifying Tribal lands. This benefit is limited to one monthly service discount per household.
Customers who qualify for the Lifeline program also qualify for Affordable Connectivity Program enrollment. If you are not a Lifeline customer, you may still qualify for the Affordable Connectivity Program. Examples of additional qualifications include:
• Demonstrate low income, at or below 200% of the Federal Poverty level
• Participate in a Lifeline-qualifying government program:
○ Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP)
○ Medicaid
○ Supplemental Security Income (SSI)
○ Federal Public Housing Assistance (FPHA)
○ Veterans Pension and Survivors Benefit
• Participate in Free/Reduced lunch program under the Richard B. Russell National School Lunch Act
• Participate in the school breakfast program under section 4 of the Child Nutrition Act
• Received a Federal Pell Grant during the current award year
• Participates in the Special Supplemental Nutritional Program for Woman, Infants and Children (WIC) (New for ACP)
• Tribal Programs for Residents on Qualifying Tribal Lands
○ Bureau of Indian Affairs General Assistance
○ Tribal Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (TANF)
○ Tribal Head Start (only those households meeting its income qualifying standard)
○ Food Distribution Program on Tribal Reservations
To determine your eligibility and sign up for the Affordable Connectivity Program, please visit https://acpbenefit.org/.
When signing up for Ziply Fiber broadband services, your installation may take place before we can confirm your Affordable Connectivity Program status and you may be charged for services, and applicable taxes and fees. It's important to receive your enrollment confirmation from the Affordable Connectivity Program prior to installation to avoid standard monthly rate charges.
You may obtain broadband service supported by the Affordable Connectivity Program from any participating provider of your choosing, and you may transfer your Affordable Connectivity Program benefit to another provider at any time. If you participate in Lifeline and the Affordable Connectivity Program you may choose to receive both benefits from one provider or separate the benefits between two providers. If you continue to receive broadband services from Ziply Fiber after transferring your service to another provider or after the program ends, you will be subject to the Ziply Fiber's undiscounted rates and general terms and conditions.
Ziply Fiber is committed to helping qualified low-income individuals pay for telephone or qualified internet services through participation in two government programs:
Federal Lifeline
Enhanced Tribal Lifeline (Federal)
Tribal Link-Up Assistance (Federal)
Telephone Assistance Programs (State)
COVID Updates:
• Recertification is now on hold for Tribal subscribers through April 30, 2023.
Federal Lifeline
Federal Lifeline is one of four Federal Communications Commission (FCC) Federal Universal Service Fund programs funded through a monthly, per line surcharge to help make communications services more affordable for low-income consumers. The FCC reviews this rate quarterly. Assistance received through these programs are non-transferable (from one person to another) that provides one discount per household on the cost of either:
• $5.25* on monthly telephone service
• $9.25 on qualified internet access service with or without telephone service.
*Please note, effective December 1, 2023 the monthly discount for telephone service only will be eliminated.
Qualified internet access service is defined as at least 25/3mbps service unless 25/3mpbs is not available. In the event that 25/3mpbs service is not available, the following two conditions must be met:
• A minimum of 4/1mpbs must be available.
• The customer must purchase the highest performing generally available residential offering lexographically ranked by (i) download bandwidth; (ii) upload bandwidth; and (iii) usage allowance.
Enhanced Tribal Lifeline & Tribal Link-Up Assistance
An eligible resident living on federally recognized Tribal Lands who participates in one of above programs or one of the following federal assistance programs shall also qualify for an additional monthly credit of up to $25.00 with Enhanced Tribal Lifeline and up to $100.00 toward installation fees with Tribal Link-Up Assistance:
• Bureau of Indian Affairs General Assistance
• Tribally Administered Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (Tribal TANF)
• Head Start (Income-Based)
• Food Distribution Program on Indian Reservations (FDPIR)
Eligibility & Application
Seasonal, Stay Connected, or Vacation Service Customers: This program is not eligible for the Federal Lifeline discount. Existing Federal Lifeline customers must remove Federal Lifeline in to enroll in Seasonal, Stay Conn Vacation Service, and reapply for Federal Lifeline upon restoring service.
Oregon Residents: Please refer to the Oregon State Telephone Assistance Program page below for information on applying to the Federal Lifeline Program.
To receive the Federal Lifeline discount each month, you must certify that you or someone in your household is eligible. The Federal Communications Commission uses the Universal Services Administration Company to administer the application and re-certification process for the Federal Lifeline program. Information can be found at https://www.lifelinesupport.org/get-started/. You must verify your continued eligibility annually (or as requested). If there is someone else at the address who is receiving a Federal Lifeline discount and you wish to be considered a separate economic unit, the Federal Lifeline Application and proof of eligibility must be submitted along with the Federal Lifeline Household Worksheet (también disponible en español).