Program aims to bring cellphone coverage to low income households
In an effort to bring affordable cellphone coverage to low-income households in Butler County, Community Partnership in Butler has teamed up with Lancaster-based Connect Us Wireless for its Affordable Connectivity Program.
According to Sandra Curry, executive director at Community Partnership, the Affordable Connectivity Program is available immediately to Butler County residents who earn 200% or below the federal poverty guidelines.
“It is a government-funded program that offers discounts on internet service and devices for eligible low-income households according to the FCC,” Curry said.
There are multiple plans, Curry said, which are either free or heavily discounted.
The talk and text plans are completely free, and data plans start at $5 a month for three gigabytes of data, $10 a month for five gigabytes and $20 a month for unlimited data.
“Sometimes people have to make choices about where their money is going,” Curry said. “This is something we thought would be a good partnership for us that we could make available to our low income clients.”
Phones are not provided through the program, so individuals must already have one that can then be put into the system.
Curry said Community Partnership was aware of the program and was making plans to add it to its list of services, but before she could reach out, Connect Us Wireless had contacted them.
“Community Action Association of Pennsylvania are basically like a chamber of commerce for all the community action agencies in the state,” Curry said. “They were working with (Connect Us Wireless), so I bet that's how they got our information.”
Curry said people who are already receiving Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program benefits or Medicaid would definitely be eligible for the program.
The program runs through Verizon Wireless cellphone towers, so coverage should be stable, Curry said.
“We are really excited,” Curry said. “It's another way we are hoping to be able to help folks manage their budgets.”
To sign up and determine eligibility, visit connectuswireless.com/what-is-acp.
