The COVID-19 pandemic demonstrated that having access to high-speed internet is critically
important – and that access is unavailable to many low-income families, often because of cost.
In 2021, the Office of the State Comptroller reported that more than 1 million (roughly 14
percent) New York households lacked access to broadband.1 Two federal programs—the
Emergency Broadband Benefit Program and the Affordable Connectivity Program—have been
established to address these disparities in access and are demonstrating positive results.

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