FCC Ends Calif. Lifeline Verification Opt-Out, Citing State SSN Rules
Citing a California law barring the state from collecting Social Security numbers or sharing data with the federal government, the FCC said Thursday that it was suspending California's ability to run its own Lifeline verification program. Instead, the state will have to go through the federal Lifeline verification system, the commission said. A spokesperson for California Gov. Gavin Newsom (D) didn't immediately comment.
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FCC Chairman Brendan Carr said the state's legislation "makes it impossible for the FCC to continue trusting California’s process for determining eligibility for federal Lifeline dollars." California apparently is barred from requiring the collection of Social Security numbers, "which could be used to ensure that program recipients are legal residents." He said the state had previously indicated that it won't vet beneficiaries of its Lifeline program based on legal immigration status. "California also has a bad track record of complying with federal Lifeline program rules," Carr said. "Federal dollars should not pay for California’s abuse of the Lifeline program.”