Pilots and Government Partnerships

Background

It has always been the Commission's goal to expand and modernize the California LifeLine Program by lowering barriers to participation and increasing participation in unserved and underserved communities through pilot programs. On December 18, 2019, the Commission issued D.18-12-019 establishing criteria for pilot programs and partnerships within California LifeLine. D.19-04-021 authorized two pilot programs, the Boost Mobile Pilot and the iFoster Pilot in April 2019. The Boost Mobile Pilot offered prepaid cell phone plans to approved participants. The iFoster Pilot offered discounts to eligible foster youth who received a smartphone and monthly prepaid cell phone services free of charge. The Boost Mobile Pilot terminated on June 30th, 2021, and iFoster pilot concluded on July 31, 2024. On May 9, 2024, D.24-05-003 established a long-term program and created a new pilot for foster youth ages 13 through 20 within the California Universal Telephone Service Program. 

In February 2021, the FCC adopted the Emergency Broadband Benefit Program (EBB) to support broadband services and connected devices to help low-income households stay connected during the COVID-19 pandemic. The 2021 Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act replaced the EBB Program with a new broadband affordability program, the Affordable Connectivity Program (ACP). On June 28, 2023, the Commission adopted D.23-06-003, approving two ACP pilot programs for CA LifeLine participants to leverage federal ACP funds to test new approaches for providing high-quality broadband services. The federal ACP no longer accepts applications, and Effective June 1, 2024, households will no longer receive ACP discount for now.