2024 Regular Session ENROLLED
SENATE CONCURRENT RESOL UTION NO. 4
BY SENATORS MIZELL, ALLAIN, BARROW, BASS, BOUDREAUX, CLOUD,
EDMONDS, FESI, HENRY, HENSGENS, HODGES, JACKSON-
ANDREWS, KLEINPETER, LAMBERT, MIGUEZ, PRICE,
SEABAUGH, STINE, TALBOT AND WOMACK
A CONCURRENT RESOL UTION
To memorialize the Congress of the United States to support the extension of funding for the
Affordable Connectivity Program (ACP) of 2021, which provides Louisiana
residents access to broadband services.
WHEREAS, on August 29, 2019, by executive order, Governor John Bel Edwards
created the Broadband for Everyone in Louisiana Commission, which facilitates private-
sector providers, public entities, and other broadband stakeholders to improve both the
adoption and availability of broadband service for Louisiana residents by providing universal
access to broadband service; and
WHEREAS, during the 2020 Second Extraordinary Session of the Legislature of
Louisiana, the office of broadband and connectivity was created within the governor's office
to promote and encourage broadband adoption for households in an effort to eliminate the
digital divide in Louisiana by 2029; and
WHEREAS, the office of broadband and connectivity's mission is to coordinate
federal, state, and municipal efforts by identifying best practices and tactics necessary to
reach their goal; and
WHEREAS, in 2021, as part of the bipartisan Infrastructure Investment and Jobs
Act's historic investment in broadband infrastructure and digital equity, Congress
appropriated more than fourteen billion dollars for the ACP; and
WHEREAS, Congress assigned the Federal Communications Commission to
administer the ACP, the successor program to the Emergency Broadband Benefit, which
helped almost nine million households afford internet access during the pandemic; and
WHEREAS, under the ACP, eligible households can receive a discount of up to
thirty dollars per month for internet services and up to seventy-five dollars per month for
households on qualifying tribal lands; and
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WHEREAS, eligible households may also receive a one-time discount of up to one
hundred dollars to purchase a laptop, desktop computer, or tablet from participating
providers; and
WHEREAS, Louisiana was the first state to receive broadband award approval from
the bipartisan Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act and is number one in the nation for
ACP enrollment with an estimated forty-six percent of eligible households enrolled; and
WHEREAS, currently, there are more than nine hundred thousand eligible
households within the state that may qualify for the ACP and four hundred twenty-two
thousand two hundred fifty-seven households that have enrolled; and
WHEREAS, based on current take rates, more than fourteen billion dollars in funding
appropriated for the ACP program could be exhausted in late 2023 or early 2024; and
WHEREAS, the ACP has been a critical tool in helping bridge the digital divide that
exists between those who have access to modern information and communications
technology and those who do not.
THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED that the Legislature of Louisiana memorializes
the Congress of the United States to support continued funding of the ACP so that
low-income Louisiana households can continue to receive the support they need to
participate in the digital marketplace.
BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that a copy of this Resolution be transmitted to the
secretary of the United States Senate and the clerk of the United States House of
Representatives and to each member of the Louisiana congressional delegation to the United
States Congress.
PRESIDENT OF THE SENATE
SPEAKER OF THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
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