Your Tax Dollars at work!

[joerockhead]

This is a BUNCH OF SHIT!!!!!


https://www.safelinkwireless.com/EnrollmentPublic/home.aspx


SafeLink Wireless is a government supported program
that provides a free cell phone and airtime each
month for income-eligible customers.


Lifeline Benefits

Lifeline Assistance is part of a program that was created by the government to provide discounted or free telephone service to income-eligible consumers. To help bring you this important benefit, SafeLink Wireless is proud to offer Lifeline Service. Through our Lifeline Service you will receive FREE cellular service, a FREE cell phone, and FREE Minutes every month! SafeLink Wireless Service does not cost anything – there are no contracts, no recurring fees and no monthly charges.

Any Minutes you do not use will roll-over. Features such as caller ID, call waiting and voicemail are all also included with your service. If you need additional Minutes, you can buy TracFone Airtime Cards at any TracFone retailer Walmart, Walgreens, Family Dollar, etc). SafeLink Airtime Cards will be available soon.

Your exact benefits, including the number of free Minutes you will receive, depend on the state you live in. Please enter your ZIP code to get the details for your state.


How to Qualify

The process to qualify for Lifeline Service depends on the State you live in. In general, you may qualify if...

1. You already participate in other State or Federal assistance program such as Federal Public Housing Assistance, Food Stamps and Medicaid.
OR
2. Your total household income is at or below 135% of the poverty guidelines set by your State and/or the Federal Government.
AND
3. No one in your household currently receives Lifeline Service through another phone carrier.
4. You have a valid United States Postal Address. In order for us to ship you your free phone you must live at a residence that can receive mail from the US Post Office. Sorry, but P.O. Boxes cannot be accepted.

In addition to meeting the guidelines above you will also be required to provide proof of your participation in an assistance program, or proof of your income level.

SafeLink Wireless offers qualifying customers FREE cellular service. This service is currently available in Alabama, Connecticut, DC, Delaware, Florida, Georgia, Illinois, Maryland, Massachusetts, Michigan, New Hampshire, New Jersey, New York, North Carolina, Ohio, Pennsylvania, Tennessee, Virginia, West Virginia and Wisconsin. Soon, SafeLink Wireless service will be offered in the following states:

[gen. cutter]

What exactly is wrong with providing a free phone to people who are 135% BELOW the National poverty level? That a pretty strict policy, even for the government.

"WE THE PEOPLE" - If we are going to pretend to act as a unified, caring, Christian nation, we should front the cost of reasonable programs to help our poor. A telephone can save a life.

[lissof]

i disagree with with this program as i do with most government programs. It is good in theory but they are abused and misused. I get out there everyday(well 5 a week) and go to work, but when i lost my job we looked for some assistance but my wife made to much money.... I was making twice what she was and i was looking for a job but she made to much........So no i do not think they should be giving out cell phones. No one had them 30 years ago. not many had them 20 years ago. A lot less had them 10 years ago vs now. so if you need/want a cellphone i think you need to pay for it.

[Krasch]

Here's a good one on a similar note...

The Ontario government has been pushing like crazy for everyone to get the H1N1 vaccine, especially since we just had an apparently healthy 13 yr old boy die of it.

Turns out there's not enough vaccine to meet needs right now. Bad enough but not the kicker.

.
.
.

The kicker is that they've already made sure that the prison population got it.

That's right. There's not enough for law-abiding members of society, but those miscreants who've chosen to victimize society get first crack at the vaccine.

Absolutely fricken ridiculous. Thank goodness there's an election coming fairly soon.

[lissof]

maybe they were the guinea pigs? or was it the final strain?

[fmb]

What exactly is wrong with providing a free phone to people who are 135% BELOW the National poverty level? That a pretty strict policy, even for the government.

Actually, the 135% percent number is 100% of the poverty level. How many dollars do these numbers work out to? The 2009 pveerty level figures are: ~$10,800 for single; ~ $18,500 for a family of four. An additional 35% (135%quoted in the article) brings those numbers to about $14,000 for a single person and about $23,800 for a family of four.

So no i do not think they should be giving out cell phones. No one had them 30 years ago. not many had them 20 years ago. A lot less had them 10 years ago vs now. so if you need/want a cellphone i think you need to pay for it.
If the government is going to pay for telephones, why not pay for the person/family to have a landline telephone? The landline telephone companies are losing their asses to the wireless telephone industry. Providing landline telephones would do two things: 1) cost less. Wireless is expensive compared to landline telephones; and 2) provide some income to the older technology landline telephone companies. Hell, it might even keep or create some jobs.

[gen. cutter]

If the government is going to pay for telephones, why not pay for the person/family to have a landline telephone? The landline telephone companies are losing their asses to the wireless telephone industry. Providing landline telephones would do two things: 1) cost less. Wireless is expensive compared to landline telephones; and 2) provide some income to the older technology landline telephone companies. Hell, it might even keep or create some jobs.

I agree with this statement. Land lines would be more economical for the poor and a utility stimulus. Or maybe not? In this age of cheap, disposable cell phones it might be cheaper to use cell phones.

[fmb]

I wasn't thinking about the cost of the wireless device, just the provision of service. Although the landline technology is old, wireless tech should be dirt cheap, too.

[joerockhead]

Fine, Give the extremely poor a Cell phone. But it can ONLY dial 911.

Why should they be able to call mom and dad, drug dealer or Ho down the street???


No, not unaccounted for Minutes!!

Get Real!!!

I hate paying for All this BS! And All these crappy politicians do it for is Votes!

[procol]

I hate paying for All this BS! And All these crappy politicians do it for is Votes!

You are not exactly "paying" for it - it is funded by charging the providers who may, or may not, be passing along the costs to customers of their services BUT NOT THE TAXPAYER:

"Some consumers may notice a “Universal Service” line item on their telephone bills. This line item appears when a company chooses to recover its USF contributions directly from its customers by billing them this charge. The FCC does not require this charge to be passed on to customers. Each company makes a business decision about whether and how to assess charges to recover its Universal Service costs. These charges usually appear as a percentage of the consumer’s phone bill. Companies that choose to collect Universal Service fees from their customers cannot collect an amount that exceeds their contribution to the USF. They also cannot collect any fees from a Lifeline program participant."

With cell-phone companies (among others) using credit ratings to determine if they will provide service to most people it can be difficult for even a person who is relatively well-off to get a cell phone, much less "land-line" service.

Lifeline and Link-Up: Affordable Telephone Service for Income-Eligible Consumers (http://www.fcc.gov/cgb/consumerfacts/lllu.html)

[Abbylicious]

The only reason I would agree with the cell phone thing is that in order to get a job, 90% of employers require that you give a valid telephone number. BUT with that said, someone qualifies, uses that phone to help get a job, and then makes too much money to be eligible for it anymore? Waste of time and money. There are better ways to take care of something like that.

Hell, when I was too poor for a phone, I used my mom's phone number. She took messages for me, and it worked fine til I could afford one myself. Hell, I still use my mom's address as my permanent mailing address, and I will until I'm positive that I have place that is at least semi-permanent (as my last couple of room mates fucked things up). But that's no reason to run to the government for help. :( People need to suck it up. Seriously.

Oh, and as for emergencies? Last I checked a lot of payphones did 911 calls sans the pocket change. Plus, if I take the SIM card out of my cell phone, it says "Emergency Calls Only." Instead of providing service, why not just recycle peoples old phones (most people update their phones every couple of years, right?) and wire them to just call emergency numbers?

Easy, cheap, recycled. :(

[fmb]

Fine, Give the extremely poor a Cell phone. But it can ONLY dial 911.
....if I take the SIM card out of my cell phone, it says "Emergency Calls Only."
I'm not 100% sure, but I think ANY old cell phone, active or inactive, will connect a call to 911.

Oh, and as for emergencies? Last I checked a lot of payphones did 911 calls sans the pocket change.
The problem with this option is the lack of pay telephones. There just aren't as many around anymore. Back in the late 1990's, I was in a community group that was picked because we were seen as the up-and-coming leaders in our area. Our service project was development of a 211 telephone number based voice mail system for the homeless and less fortunate.

A person (family member, future employer, etc.) could call the number, enter the code provided by the owner, and a message could be left for him/her. The less fortunate person could access the voicemail from any telephone, including payphones. The program was a tremendous success; however, three months ago this system was closed down because of the extremely limited number of pay telephones available in my area. The program was great while it lasted, but became the victim of technology.

These charges usually appear as a percentage of the consumer’s phone bill.
I wonder if the percentage of the telephone bill is based upon the base plan, or is the percentage calculated using the higher amounts required for data, text, and other plans.

[Abbylicious]

The problem with this option is the lack of pay telephones. There just aren't as many around anymore.

They're all over where I live. Maybe it's just one of those regional things?

[fmb]

They're all over where I live. Maybe it's just one of those regional things?

Possibly, but I think maybe your region is better off than most other regions when comparing payphone availability. Here in SC, there aren't very many at gas stations, shopping centers, or street corners. A buddy of mine lost his job with a major telcom company a few years ago; his job was repairing/installing payphones in the New England states.

:)

[Krasch]

In Toronto there certainly aren't as many as there used to be, but that only makes sense as they can't possibly be as profitable as they used to with the proliferation of cell phones.

That said, I wouldn't call them exactly scarce.

[canu]

Got a dime dude