Funding for Wi-Fi hotspots at risk?

A majority of the Senate voted to end a Federal Communications Commission (FCC) rule funding Wi-Fi hotspots on May 8, 2025. These Wi-Fi hotspots are separate from onsite Wi-Fi networks used while on school district or library property and provide internet accessibility outside of schools and libraries. Currently, this funding allows students whose families are unable to afford to purchase Wi-Fi in their homes to have access to a hotspot free of charge in order to complete school-related tasks at home. Libraries offer a similar lending program.

In order for this rule to be signed into law, the House would also need to approve the companion bill, which still awaits a House vote. Both chambers would then need to agree upon a final version of the bill before it can be submitted for President Trump’s signature. Unless otherwise provided at the state and/or local levels, students in resource-poor districts and in low-income families stand to be placed at further disadvantage by the inability to access what has become a foundational piece of education–internet access. 

Relatedly, in the coming months, the Supreme Court of the United States will also decide whether the E-rate funding program as a whole constitutes an unconstitutional tax. 

“Those with sufficient internet access are increasingly separated from those without, and this decision risks widening that gap even further." Ann Gomez, FCC Commissioner