FCC chair teams up with Ted Cruz to block Wi-Fi hotspots for schoolkids

FCC chair teams up with Ted Cruz to block Wi-Fi hotspots for schoolkids

Ted Cruz’s anti-hotspot bill stalled, but FCC is ending Wi-Fi program on its own.

Carr Circulates Proposals to Zero Out Wi-Fi Programs

FCC Chairman Brendan Carr on Wednesday circulated two items targeting programs created under the Biden administration to fund Wi-Fi hot spots and Wi-Fi on school buses. Commissioner Anna Gomez immediately indicated she opposed cutting the programs, which have long been...

FCC’s Carr, Cruz Move to Slash Wi-Fi Subsidies for Schools Over Content Risks

The Unlikely Alliance in Telecom Policy In a surprising turn of events, Federal Communications Commission Chairman Brendan Carr has aligned with Republican Sen. Ted Cruz to dismantle a program providing Wi-Fi hotspots to schoolchildren, marking a significant shift in federal broadband policy. The initiative, originally launched under the Biden administration, allowed schools and libraries to lend out mobile hotspots using funds from the FCC’s E-…

Carr Looking to Scrap FCC Funding for Off-campus Wi-Fi

WASHINGTON, Sept. 3, 2025 – Federal Communications Commission Chairman Brendan Carr circulated two items Wednesday that would roll back the agency’s subsidy support for Wi-Fi connectivity outside of schools and libraries.In 2023 the agency expanded its E-Rate program, which spends about $2 billion annually on internet discounts to schools and libraries, to fund Wi-Fi access on school buses. And in July 2024, the agency cleared the way for librar…