Due to a government benefit included in the bipartisan infrastructure plan, Americans are saving a total of $500bn dollars per month on home internet bills

According to a government benefit included in the bipartisan infrastructure plan, Americans are saving a total of $500 billion dollars per month on home internet bills, Vice President Kamala Harris will declare on Monday in South Carolina.

With more than 16 million American families already registered in the Affordable Connectivity Program, that marks a 40% increase since the federal government developed a website to advertise the programme last May.

The increase is a positive development for the White House, which has been anxious to highlight the practical advantages of the flood of legislation approved during the last Congress.

While President Joe Biden has repeatedly expressed his expectation that impressions of his administration would improve when the law is executed, recent polling indicates that many Americans are ignorant of the initiatives and advantages covered by the Act.

Furthermore, Harris is supposed to outline specific initiatives aimed at enhancing minority pupils' access to the internet. According to a White House fact sheet acquired by Bloomberg, the vice president will announce a new $175 million grant from the Commerce Department for internet access, tools, and training to help institutions and colleges that disproportionately serve minority students.

On her visit to Columbia, the vice president—who is likely to appear with South Carolina Democratic Representative James Clyburn—will also make an announcement about a new initiative aimed at facilitating historically Black schools and universities use of government Internet resources.

The government wants to keep raising awareness of the programme, especially among communities of colour and those with low incomes that are most likely to be eligible.

In a study done by Morning Consult last year, just 23% of individuals, including only 17% of those with low incomes, indicated they had heard "a lot" or "some" about the broadband benefit programme.

The Federal Communications Commission was urged in a report released in January by the Government Accountability Office to improve consumer outreach in order to ensure that the programme was better achieving its objectives. The report also criticised the government for advertisements it claimed were poorly translated into other languages.

Following information on government procurement, the FCC engaged an independent communications company earlier this year to promote the programme. State and regional governments have also been requested by the vice president to assist in informing people about the scheme.

At&T Inc., Verizon Communications Inc., and Comcast Corp. are just a few of the hundreds of internet service providers that take part in the programme, which offers discounted rates and federal aid up to $30 per month. Discounts on laptops and tablets are also available to families that qualify. The bipartisan infrastructure plan allocated $65 billion in total to increase internet connectivity.

(Bloomberg.com, Morningconsult.com, FCC.gov)