Taxpayers foot bill for free [low income] government cell phones [$1+ billion per year!]
WLS - Chicago ^ | June 12, 2012 | Ben Bradley
Posted on June 12, 2012 8:17:25 PM EDT by kevcol
New questions have emerged about a government program that has given away millions of free cell phones and service to people with low incomes and those in rural areas.
The money comes from the federal "Universal Service Charge" on your phone bill. It has its roots way back in the 1930s. The goal was to make sure people in rural areas and the poor had access to telephone service. In the 1990s, it expanded to include wireless phones.
Since then, the numbers have exploded. The cost of the program is now more than $1 billion dollars a year. The FCC, along with some Democrats and Republicans, are trying to reign it in.
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On an abandoned lot on the West Side of Chicago, a sign on a bright green tent advertises a deal too good for many to resist.
"My daughter told me about it. It's a government phone," said Jeanetta Anderson.
When asked if she had to pay anything for it, Anderson said no.
She's right. This is one case where "free" really means free -- at least, for the people receiving the phones.
When asked who pays for the program, cell phone user Michael Brown said, "The government or the taxpayers. Someone. I don't pay for it. Like I said, I can't afford it. It helps me."
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An FCC spokesperson said: "Since 1985, [the wireless service program] has helped low-income consumers find jobs, contact friends and family, and call 911 in emergencies, and we will not allow fraud and abuse to destroy this valuable program for the nation's most vulnerable citizens."
(Excerpt) Read more at abclocal.go.com ...
