Hassan, Colleagues Demand Trump Administration Withdraw Proposal to Undermine E-Rate Program

WASHINGTON - U.S. Senator Maggie Hassan joined colleagues in urging Federal Communications Commission (FCC) Chairman Brendan Carr to withdraw the Commission's harmful proposal to eliminate or limit the E-Rate program, which helps schools and libraries across New Hampshire afford reliable internet access.

For nearly 30 years, E-Rate has helped close the digital divide by ensuring that students and library patrons can access the internet regardless of their income or ZIP code. In 2025, E-Rate helped more than 158,000 schools and libraries pay recurring broadband bills, increase bandwidth, maintain secure internal Wi-Fi networks, and replace aging infrastructure. In New Hampshire alone, E-Rate has helped 430 schools and libraries expand their internet capacity. Ending or sharply curtailing E-Rate would impose severe costs on schools, libraries and property taxpayers, while weakening economic growth, undermining American technological leadership, and jeopardizing national security. The E-Rate program has invested more than $69 billion to connect schools and libraries to the internet across the country.

"Schools and libraries help develop the next generation of engineers, scientists, and cybersecurity professionals, including in communities that have historically lacked access to those opportunities. Cutting E-Rate would narrow that talent pipeline. Maintaining connectivity in every school and library is therefore an investment in America's technological leadership, economic competitiveness, and national security," Senator Hassan and her colleagues wrote to Chairman Carr.

The lawmakers continued, "We strongly support measures to protect children online and address concerns around excessive screen time. But cutting E-Rate is not a child-safety measure. E-Rate funds broadband connectivity - not laptops, tablets, applications, or online content - and recipients must already comply with the Children's Internet Protection Act, including by using filtering and blocking tools, adopting internet-safety policies, and educating students about appropriate online behavior. States and local communities, meanwhile, are developing targeted policies governing when and how students use devices in schools - an appropriate way to address screen-time concerns, rather than cutting broadband support. The Commission should not use child safety as a pretext to dismantle the secure, managed broadband infrastructure that schools and libraries need to educate students and help them navigate the digital world safely."

Read the full text of Senator Hassan and her colleagues' request to the FCC here.

###

• Print
• Email
• Share
• Tweet