FCC-Subsidized Broadband Internet Is ‘ObamaNet’ Welfare For The Poor?

A plan for FCC-subsidized broadband internet could potentially provide low income Americans access to high speed internet for a measly $9.25 a month, but some critics claim this new “ObamaNet” welfare plan could lead to taxpayers paying more to subsidize more of the internet.

In a related report by the Inquisitr, the political fight over Obamacare almost led to the death of one Florida man who found himself stuck in the so-called Medicaid gap.

In modern times, government-subsidized welfare programs have provided a variety of technology to the poor. The Lifeline program was started under President Ronald Reagan in order to provide landlines for telephones, and it currently has helped 12 million American households. This program was expanded to include the so-called Obama phone (which really should be called a Bush phone since it started under the previous administration) in order to provide the jobless access to mobile phones so they could communicate with potential employers.

The possibility for FCC-subsidized broadband internet was raised by FCC chairman Tom Wheeler, who claims that internet access is an essential service in modern times and as such should be provided by the government for the public good.

“Broadband is every bit as important today as plain old phone service was 30 years ago,” said Gene Kimmelman, a former Justice Department official.

A vote on the proposal for the FCC-subsidized broadband internet plan is scheduled for June 18, and already it is being said this expansion of the welfare program will lead to rising costs. For example, the Libertarian Republic claims the fight over Net Neutrality has allowed the FCC to take control, and this means only more government spending.

“By classifying Internet as a public good we have now invited the government in. As with anything government subsidized, the cost to paying customers can be expected to rise. It is also conceivable that taxpayers will soon be funding the building and maintenance costs for new internet infrastructure in rural areas, to make sure everyone has access to this valuable ‘public good.’… Bureaucratic busy-bodies, lobbyists, and socialist-minded redistributors of everything which is not theirs will decide how the internet evolves. The innovators, creators, and users will not.”

Opponents of the FCC-subsidized broadband plan also fear the rise of fraud. When the so-called Obamaphone was implemented, it is claimed that welfare abuse rose in numbers. Michael O’Rielly, a Republican commissioner on the FCC, called the Lifeline program “inefficient, costly and in serious need of review.” Michael E. Clements, an acting director at the Government Accountability Office, issued a report on attempts to curb fraud, but while he believes reforms had some impact they’re uncertain whether “they’ve reduced all of the fraud.”

Do you think FCC-subsidized broadband internet is a good idea?

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