What happened to home internet subscriptions after the Affordable Connectivity Program ended

The program ended on June 1, 2024, and nothing of its size replaced it

USAC's program page states that the Affordable Connectivity Program (ACP) ended on June 1, 2024, "due to a lack of additional funding from Congress". It gave eligible households up to $30 off their monthly internet bill, and up to $75 on qualifying Tribal lands. The program's enrollment and claims tracker still describes it as ended for lack of funding.

USAC's county enrollment file for February 8, 2024 counts 22,591,923¹ enrolled households. The program enrolled households, so this is a household count; the FCC's broadband map counts homes and businesses (locations) instead, and the two cannot be divided into each other.

The federal discount still running is Lifeline: up to $9.25 toward a phone or internet bill each month, for households that meet its income test or take part in programs such as SNAP or Medicaid. It is smaller than the ACP discount was, and it is covered further down this page.

Where the discount reached furthest

Dividing each state's February 2024 enrollment by its households in the Census Bureau's 2020–2024 survey gives a rough measure of how much the program mattered there. It is our estimate, combining two sources with different reference periods, so read it as an order of magnitude.

Louisiana31.0

Kentucky25.1

Ohio23.8

New York23.2

Michigan23.1

Nevada23.0

Oklahoma22.5

New Mexico22.0

California21.7

Mississippi21.3

North Carolina21.0

Alabama20.7

District of Columbia19.7

South Carolina19.6

Florida19.5

Rhode Island18.9

Arizona18.3

Arkansas17.8

Georgia17.7

West Virginia17.6

Wisconsin17.2

Maine16.5

Missouri15.8

Indiana15.7

Texas15.6

Tennessee15.2

Pennsylvania14.5

Illinois14.0

Virginia14.0

Oregon13.9

Massachusetts13.2

Connecticut13.0

Delaware13.0

Hawaii12.3

Maryland12.2

Nebraska12.0

Montana11.9

Washington11.7

Kansas11.4

Colorado10.6

Minnesota10.6

New Jersey9.6

Vermont9.5

Iowa9.4

Alaska9.2

Wyoming8.9

Idaho7.6

New Hampshire7.0

Utah6.7

South Dakota6.6

North Dakota5.4

Source: US Internet Map, Our calculation from the sources named in the definition.

Show the numbers

State	ACP households per 100 households (estimate)
Louisiana	31.0
Kentucky	25.1
Ohio	23.8
New York	23.2
Michigan	23.1
Nevada	23.0
Oklahoma	22.5
New Mexico	22.0
California	21.7
Mississippi	21.3
North Carolina	21.0
Alabama	20.7
District of Columbia	19.7
South Carolina	19.6
Florida	19.5
Rhode Island	18.9
Arizona	18.3
Arkansas	17.8
Georgia	17.7
West Virginia	17.6
Wisconsin	17.2
Maine	16.5
Missouri	15.8
Indiana	15.7
Texas	15.6
Tennessee	15.2
Pennsylvania	14.5
Illinois	14.0
Virginia	14.0
Oregon	13.9
Massachusetts	13.2
Connecticut	13.0
Delaware	13.0
Hawaii	12.3
Maryland	12.2
Nebraska	12.0
Montana	11.9
Washington	11.7
Kansas	11.4
Colorado	10.6
Minnesota	10.6
New Jersey	9.6
Vermont	9.5
Iowa	9.4
Alaska	9.2
Wyoming	8.9
Idaho	7.6
New Hampshire	7.0
Utah	6.7
South Dakota	6.6
North Dakota	5.4

Louisiana leads at 31.0 per 100 households, followed by Kentucky (25.1 per 100 households), Ohio (23.8 per 100 households), New York (23.2 per 100 households) and Michigan (23.1 per 100 households). At the other end are North Dakota (5.4 per 100 households), South Dakota (6.6 per 100 households) and Utah (6.7 per 100 households⁴). If the end of the discount had pushed many households off the internet, the high-enrollment states are where it should show first.

The 2025 Census survey shows no fall in subscriptions

The American Community Survey asks a sample of households each year whether they have internet access through a paid subscription, and of what kind. The 2025 one-year estimates, released on October 29, 2026, are the first to cover a full calendar year with no ACP payments. The 2024 estimates cover a year in which the program still paid discounts in its first months.

In nearly every state, the share of households without an internet subscription was lower in 2025 than in 2024, and the high-enrollment states moved the same way as the rest. In Louisiana it went from 9.5% to 7.9% (±0.4 percentage points); in Mississippi from 11.6% to 8.9% (±0.6 percentage points); in Kentucky from 9.1% to 8.0%; in Ohio from 7.7% to 6.7%. Wyoming, where the program reached only 8.9 per 100 households⁴, showed one of the larger moves, from 9.9%² to 6.7%³, with wider margins because its sample is small.

The exceptions are small and within the margins of error. In New Hampshire the share with a broadband subscription was 95.3% in 2024 and 94.7% in 2025; in Nevada, 95.1% and 95.0%; in New Mexico, 90.5%² and 90.5%³.

The survey cannot say why. It does not ask whether a household had the ACP, what it pays, or whether it changed plans. Households could have kept their service at full price, moved to a cheaper plan, switched to Lifeline, or replaced a home connection with a phone plan, and the net figure would look the same.

More cellular-only plans; wired subscriptions moved both ways

The Census counts a cellular data plan as a broadband subscription, so "any broadband" includes households whose only internet is a phone or hotspot plan. That share rose in most states between 2024 and 2025. In Ohio it went from 12.0% to 13.0%, in California from 12.0% to 12.9%, and in North Dakota from 9.4% to 11.9% (±1.3 percentage points). Alaska moved the other way, from 17.4%² to 15.0%³.

Subscriptions over cable, fiber or DSL did not follow one direction. Kentucky's share rose from 72.4% to 73.7%; West Virginia's fell from 71.1% to 68.6% (±1.1 percentage points), Idaho's from 72.1% to 70.1%, and New Jersey's from 81.4%² to 79.9%³. Across states, these changes show no clear pattern by how many households had been enrolled in the ACP.

Louisiana16.6% ±0.6

Mississippi16.1% ±0.7

Alaska15.0% ±1.3

Michigan14.9% ±0.3

New York13.9% ±0.3

Kentucky13.1% ±0.5

Ohio13.0% ±0.3

California12.9% ±0.2

North Dakota11.9% ±1.3

Source: Census Bureau, American Community Survey 2025 1-year detailed tables. Whiskers show the 90% margin of error. Period: 2025.

Show the numbers

Area	Households relying only on a cellular data plan	MOE
Louisiana	16.6%	±0.6
Mississippi	16.1%	±0.7
Alaska	15.0%	±1.3
Michigan	14.9%	±0.3
New York	13.9%	±0.3
Kentucky	13.1%	±0.5
Ohio	13.0%	±0.3
California	12.9%	±0.2
North Dakota	11.9%	±1.3

Louisiana and Mississippi, two of the states where the ACP reached furthest, are also the two states with the highest shares of cellular-only households: 16.6% and 16.1%³. That was already true in 2024 (16.1% and 15.4%²).

The income gap the program was aimed at

The ACP was open to households with low incomes. The survey's income breakdown shows the gap that remains in 2025, a year after the discount stopped. In Louisiana, 80.0% (±1.8 percentage points) of households earning under $20,000 a year have a broadband subscription, against 97.4% of those earning $75,000 or more. In Mississippi the figures are 79.8% and 96.4%; in Kentucky, 79.6% and 97.2%; in Ohio, 82.2% and 97.3%³. The 2024 one-year release does not carry this breakdown in our data, so these are levels, not changes.

Smartphones carry more of the load in the same states. A smartphone is the only computer in 18.2% of Mississippi households and 16.7% of Louisiana households, against 8.8%³ in California.

Lifeline: the discount that remains, and how unevenly it is used

USAC measures Lifeline participation as enrolled subscribers in a month divided by households it estimates are eligible from the Census survey. For June 2026 the rate ranges from 2.7% in Wyoming to 44.3% in Oklahoma. California (37.6%) and Michigan (33.6%) follow; Oregon (5.5%) and Kansas (5.7%) are near the bottom with Wyoming. In Louisiana it is 22.4%⁵.

Most Lifeline subscribers use the benefit on a wireless plan that bundles voice and data, according to USAC's claims data, not on a home broadband line. A state's participation rate therefore says more about how many eligible households have signed up than about home internet.

Service available is a different question from service paid for

The ACP subsidized subscriptions; it did not build networks. What providers report they can install is measured separately, by the FCC. As of June 30, 2026 (file revision of November 10, 2026), wired service at 100/20 Mbps is reported at 89.4% of Louisiana's homes and businesses, and 36.9%⁷ have exactly one wired provider at that speed. "Available" means a provider reports it could install service within ten business days; the FCC data contain no prices.

Wired 100/20 Mbps available (FCC, share of locations)89.4%

Households subscribing to cable, fiber or DSL (Census)69.8% ±0.7

Households relying only on a cellular data plan16.6% ±0.6

Households with no internet subscription7.9% ±0.4

Source: FCC, National Broadband Map, data as of June 30, 2026; Census Bureau, American Community Survey 2025 1-year detailed tables. Availability is a share of locations as of June 30, 2026 (FCC); subscriptions are a share of households from the American Community Survey, 2025 (whiskers: 90% margin of error). Different units and dates: read the gap as a sign, not an exact number.

Show the numbers

Measure	Share	MOE
Wired 100/20 Mbps available (FCC, share of locations)	89.4%
Households subscribing to cable, fiber or DSL (Census)	69.8%	±0.7
Households relying only on a cellular data plan	16.6%	±0.6
Households with no internet subscription	7.9%	±0.4

The gap between the two bars is not a count of people priced out. The FCC counts locations and the Census counts households, and cost is not the only reason a household goes without. In NTIA's November 2023 Internet Use Survey, taken while the ACP was still paying, 57.5% of Louisiana households with no one using the internet at home gave no need or interest as the main reason and 22.4%⁸ gave cost; both estimates rest on a small sample. For any one address, the FCC National Broadband Map lists the providers that report service there. A provider's prices and any low-income plan it offers appear on its broadband facts label, which the FCC requires at the point of sale.

What to watch next

The Census one-year estimates for 2026, expected in 2027, will show whether 2025 held. Lifeline's participation file is updated by USAC through the year. The next FCC availability release, as of December 31, 2026, is also due in 2027. None of these will say how individual former ACP households fared; that would take a survey asking them directly. For how subscriptions compare with availability in a single state, see the state pages, for example Louisiana or Mississippi.