This is one of my favorite items to re-post.
LifeLine/Linkup
The government has been making sure that low-income Americans get access to affordable phone service thru what is known as the Lifeline and Linkup programs. The programs were created during the Reagan Administration and is funded by the telecom industry.
Link-Up pays up to $30.00 of the telephone set up fees for new service including cell phone service. Link-Up also lets consumers borrow up to $200 of set-up fees, interest-free, for up to one year.
The Lifeline program pays at least $10 a month of a customers monthly phone bill, depending on the state and phone company. Visit this link to see what’s available for your state www.naruc.org/commissions.cfm.
SafeLink
SafeLink Wireless was created by TracFone Wireless which has been authorized to access the Lifelife/Linkup program to offer qualifying customers contract-free no-cost cellular service. The number of free minutes, vary by state. Get more information by calling 1-800-SAFELINK or visiting www.SafeLink.com
SafeLink Wireless is available in Alabama, Connecticut, D. of Columbia, Delaware, Florida, Georgia, Massachusetts, Michigan, New Hampshire, New Jersey, New York, North Carolina, Pennsylvania, Tennessee, Virginia, West Virginia and Wisconsin. Other states are being added as permitted.
Your state not listed? Call your Public Utility Commission; visit this link for contact info www.naruc.org/commissions.cfm.
How To Apply
Contact your local telephone company to make sure that you qualify for these benefits in your state and to request an application form.
If your local telephone company is not authorized to provide Lifeline or Link-Up discounts, talk to your state public utility commission or consumer advocate office to locate an authorized service provider. Visit this link to contact your Public Utility Commission: www.naruc.org/commissions.cfm.
Eligibility
Eligibility requirements vary from state to state. To find the criteria for your state, go to www.lifelinesupport.org/li/low-income/lifelinesupport/browser/.
If your state uses the federal categories, those standards require either that consumers have a total household income that does not exceed 135% of the Federal Poverty Guidelines OR that they participate in one of the following programs:
-SNAP/Food Stamps
-SSI (Supplemental Security Income)
-Section 8 (Federal Public Housing Assistance)
-LIHEAP (Low-Income Home Energy Assistance Program)
-TANF (Temporary Assistance to Needy Families)
-Free Lunch (The National School Lunch Programs Free Lunch Program)
Commenting
I hope that no one leaves smart-alec comments as some have done in the past when I posted this info (I did not let the comments go public). These days, thanks to certain ideologies, being poor is akin to being a leper while we know for a fact that those who have more money consume the most of the nation’s resources (i.e. use more of the public utilities, public airports, public streets, public bridges, public water, and other public natural resources developed with taxpayer money).
And of course in Islam, the poor are not looked down up; and giving zakaat and sadaqa are part of our religious duties.
