U.S. Sen. Ben Ray Luján
From the Office of U.S. Sen. Ben Ray Luján:
Washington, D.C. – Today, U.S. Sen. Ben Ray Luján (D-N.M.), Chair of the Subcommittee on Communications, Media, and Broadband, applauds the passage of an additional $7 billion for the Affordable Connectivity Program and $3.08 billion for Rip-and-Replace in a mark-up on Thursday in the Senate Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation.
Earlier this year in a letter to House and Senate leadership, Sen. Luján urged Congress to fund the Affordable Connectivity Program (ACP) to be included as part of future must-pass legislation. Representing one of the most hard to connect states in the country, Senator Luján has fought to connect more New Mexicans and Americans to affordable, high-speed internet.
Access to broadband provides vital connections to education, health care, and economic opportunity. In 2021, Congress established ACP and the Broadband Equity Access and Deployment (BEAD) program to further improve broadband access and affordability. The Affordable Connectivity Program previously helped more than 23 million households connect to affordable broadband before it expired in May without congressional action.
“Bipartisan support for the Affordable Connectivity Program finally hit the momentum it needed to pass the Senate Commerce Committee,” Sen. Luján said. “ACP is a critical lifeline that serves more than 55 million Americans, this is a program the federal government cannot afford to lose. I urge my colleagues in the House and Senate to not waste time once we’re back from August recess and pass additional funding for ACP to keep Americans connected to the digital world.”
Earlier this year, Sen. Luján introduced an amendment— as well as S. 4317, the Secure and Affordable Broadband Extension Act— to strengthen ACP, provide additional funds for “rip and replace” (officially known as the Secure and Trusted Communications Networks Reimbursement Program), modernize eligibility and verification, and require the FCC to reauction certain spectrum licenses for unassigned spectrum that the Commission has previously auctioned.
Wednesday, funding for the Affordable Connectivity Program and Rip and Replace Program was included in S. 2238, the Proper Leadership to Align Networks (PLAN) for Broadband Act previously introduced by U.S. Senators Roger Wicker, R-Miss., Lujan, D-N.M., John Thune, R-S.D. and Peter Welch, D-Vt.
The bill now heads to the floor of the Senate where Sen. Luján will push for final bipartisan passage.