The Federal Communications Commission (FCC) is contemplating a new universal service program that would subsidize broadband services for low-income consumers, and it is looking to use its Lifeline program, which currently subsidizes low-income telephone service consumers, as the model to follow. However, a closer look at the history of the billion-plus Lifeline program shows a wasteful and fraud-laden program that taxes virtually all telephone service consumers and subsidizes millions ineligible consumers in order to help a few.
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