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  "description": "First hearing is scheduled for April 30.",
  "path": "/california-15-low-income-internet-bill-gets-a-hearing/",
  "publishedAt": "2025-04-21T21:29:30.000Z",
  "site": "https://broadbandbreakfast.com",
  "tags": [
    "_via the Assembly’s website_",
    "_California Affordable Home Internet Act_",
    "_two other telecom bills_",
    "_2.95 million California households_",
    "_over $1 billion annually_"
  ],
  "textContent": "WASHINGTON, April 21, 2025 – The California Assembly Committee on Communications and Conveyance will hear testimony April 30 on a bill that would require internet service providers to offer a low-cost broadband option to qualifying low-income households.\n\nThe bill’s author, Assemblymember **Tasha Boerner** , D-Encinitas, also serves as chair of the committee that will preside over the hearing.\n\nBoerner’s office told _Broadband Breakfast_ there is no public witness list or testimony available at this time. The hearing will be livestreamed _via the Assembly’s website_ next Wednesday at 1:30 p.m. PDT.\n\nBoerner’s _California Affordable Home Internet Act_ (AB 353) would mandate that all fixed internet providers offer service with speeds of at least 100 megabits per second download and 20 Mbps upload for no more than $15 per month, inclusive of recurring taxes and fees.\n\nThe bill explicitly excludes mobile broadband providers from this requirement, but – unlike New York’s Affordable Broadband Act – it does not exempt smaller providers.\n\nEligibility for service would be tied to participation in public assistance programs such as CalFresh, Medi-Cal, and Supplemental Security Income.\n\nThe bill also requires providers to make “commercially reasonable efforts” to promote the offer, including posting details prominently on websites and in customer materials.\n\nAB 353 will be heard alongside _two other telecom bills_ on April 30:\n\n  * AB 470, from Assemblymember **Tina McKinnor** , D-Inglewood, which would allow telephone providers to relinquish their status as “Carriers of Last Resort” in areas with alternative voice services.\n  * AB 654, from Assemblymember **Jessica Caloza** , D-Los Angeles, which would establish a homelessness resource hotline modeled after 311 non-emergency systems.\n\n\n\nThe broadband affordability measure comes as state officials evaluate options to sustain internet access for low-income households following the expiration of federal assistance programs.\n\nAs of February 2024, about _2.95 million California households_ were enrolled in the now-expired Affordable Connectivity Program, which provided monthly internet discounts of $30 to $75 to select low-income households.\n\nAccording to federal data, more than 5.8 million California households met ACP income eligibility thresholds, underscoring the potential reach of a state-level affordability mandate.\n\nA recent analysis from the California Public Utilities Commission’s Public Advocates Office estimated that Boerner’s proposal could save California consumers _over $1 billion annually_, with minimal financial impact on major broadband providers. The report found that the affordability requirement would reduce revenue for the state’s four largest ISPs by less than 1%.",
  "title": "California $15 Low-Income Internet Bill Gets a Hearing",
  "updatedAt": "2026-03-11T03:30:37.281Z"
}