Telecommunications: FCC Has Implemented the Lifeline National Verifier but Should Improve Consumer Awareness and Experience
Fast Facts
The Federal Communications Commission's Lifeline program provides discounts on phone and internet service for low-income Americans. Service providers used to check applicants' eligibility, but by June 2020, most applicants were required to use FCC's new "Verifier" system instead. The Verifier checks state and federal data or lets people submit supporting documents.
But the FCC hasn't made people aware of the Verifier, or provided information tribal governments need to help people use it. Also, the FCC's document submission process is challenging, leading some eligible applicants to give up. Our recommendations address these and other issues.
Highlights
What GAO Found
As of June 2020, the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) required consumers nationwide to use the Lifeline National Verifier (Verifier), a centralized process and data system, to check their eligibility for Lifeline. Because consumers who participate in certain federal benefits programs qualify for discounted phone and internet service through Lifeline, the Verifier checks state and federal benefits databases to verify consumers' eligibility. The Verifier also includes a manual review process for consumers to submit documents proving their eligibility if they cannot be found in a database. As of November 2020, the Verifier had connections with databases in 20 states and 2 federal agencies. GAO found that although consumers in states without state database connections had the same likelihood of actually meeting eligibility requirements as consumers in states with such connections, they were less likely to be found eligible for Lifeline through the Verifier (see figure).
Average Eligibility Determination for New Lifeline Applicants in States with and without State Database Connections to the Lifeline National Verifier, June 2018 through June 2020
FCC coordinated with state and federal stakeholders to implement the Verifier. However, stakeholders told GAO that many eligible consumers are not aware of the Verifier or Lifeline. Consumers may lack this awareness because FCC's consumer education planning did not always align with key practices, such as developing consistent, clear messages and researching target audiences. As a result, eligible consumers may not apply for Lifeline. Moreover, while FCC originally envisioned tribal governments and organizations assisting residents of tribal lands with the Verifier, it has not provided them with quality information to effectively do so.
Although FCC reported that the Verifier is meeting its goal of improving the consumer experience, GAO found that the manual review process, which FCC used to determine the eligibility of more than half of applicants in many states, is challenging for consumers. However, FCC does not collect complete information on consumers' experience with this process, and thus is limited in its ability to identify and address the challenges consumers face. Such challenges likely contributed to eligible consumers giving up on their applications. For example, we found that more than two-thirds of applicants who underwent manual review between June 2018 and June 2020 did not complete their applications.
Why GAO Did This Study
FCC's Lifeline program discounts phone and internet service for eligible low-income consumers. In 2019, FCC authorized $982 million in support for 6.9 million eligible consumers. FCC created the Verifier with the stated goals of reducing fraud and costs and improving the consumer experience. The Verifier includes an online application, connections to state and federal benefits databases, and a standardized manual review process.
GAO was asked to review FCC's implementation of the Verifier. This report examines: (1) the status of the Verifier; (2) FCC's coordination with stakeholders and efforts to educate consumers and facilitate tribal stakeholders' involvement; and (3) the extent to which the Verifier is meeting its goals.
GAO reviewed FCC orders and documentation; analyzed Verifier performance and Lifeline subscriber data; interviewed FCC and other agency officials, and selected industry, state, tribal, and consumer stakeholders; and surveyed state officials. Stakeholders were selected to obtain a variety of non-generalizable viewpoints.
Recommendations
GAO is making six recommendations, including that FCC develop a consumer education plan, provide quality information to tribal organizations, and collect information on consumers' experience with the manual review process. FCC agreed to take steps to address all of GAO's recommendations.
Recommendations for Executive Action
| Agency Affected | Recommendation | Status |
|---|---|---|
| Federal Communications Commission | The Chairman of FCC should develop and implement a plan to educate eligible consumers about the Lifeline program and Verifier requirements that aligns with key practices for consumer education planning. (Recommendation 1) |
As of July 2024, FCC was developing a comprehensive consumer education plan for the Lifeline program and Verifier that aligns with leading practices; when we confirm that FCC has completed this plan, we will provide updated information.
|
| Federal Communications Commission | The Chairman of FCC should provide tribal organizations with targeted information and tools, such as access to the Verifier, that equip them to assist residents of tribal lands with their Verifier applications. (Recommendation 2) |
FCC's Lifeline program discounts phone and internet service for eligible low-income consumers. In 2021, we reported that starting in June 2020, FCC required consumers nationwide to use the Lifeline National Verifier (Verifier), a centralized process and data system, to check their eligibility for Lifeline. Although residents of tribal lands often rely on tribal governments and organizations to provide them with information on Lifeline and how to access it through the Verifier, we found these organizations lacked quality information from FCC to support their efforts. In particular, when we reviewed the resources for tribal stakeholders published on the Lifeline support website, we found that none of the resources clarified whether third parties such as tribal governments and organizations could help consumers use the Verifier. Federal internal control standards state that agencies should communicate quality information to external parties to help the agency achieve its objectives. While FCC had developed informational materials specifically for tribes, these materials lacked important information specific to situations on tribal lands and tribal stakeholders we spoke with told us that the materials did not meet their needs. Additionally, in 2016, FCC stated its expectation that state and tribal governments would be able to directly access the Verifier to establish or verify their citizens' eligibility. Although FCC granted state government agencies access to the Verifier's online application to assist state residents with their applications, FCC did not extended this access to tribal governments. Therefore, we recommended that FCC provide tribal organizations with targeted information and tools, such as access to the Verifier, that would equip them to assist residents of tribal lands with their Verifier applications. In 2022, we confirmed that FCC enabled tribal organizations to access the Verifier, similar to state agencies, to assist the residents of tribal lands with their Verifier applications. Furthermore, FCC held tribal-specific webinars for outreach and took action to address tribal-specific feedback on the Verifier. By empowering tribal governments and organizations to help residents of tribal lands with their Verifier applications, FCC is helping to address low Lifeline subscribership on tribal lands, where access to affordable telecommunications services has been a long-standing challenge.
|
| Federal Communications Commission | The Chairman of FCC should identify and use performance measures to track the Verifier's progress in delivering value to consumers. (Recommendation 3) |
As of July 2024, FCC has taken action to implement this recommendation and will continue to look at specific measures to track the Verifier's progress; when we confirm that FCC has taken additional steps in response to this recommendation, we will provide updated information.
|
| Federal Communications Commission | The Chairman of FCC should ensure that it has quality information on consumers' experience with the Verifier's manual review process, and should use that information to improve the consumer experience to meet the Verifier's goals. (Recommendation 4) |
As of July 2024, FCC has made system and process changes based on feedback from consumer groups and stakeholders, including the addition of an application status bar. FCC said it will continue to collect feedback from consumers to help improve the Verifier; when we confirm that FCC has taken additional steps in response to this recommendation, we will provide updated information.
|
| Federal Communications Commission | The Chairman of FCC should ensure that the Verifier's online application and support website align with characteristics for leading federal website design, including that they are accurate, clear, understandable, easy to use, and contain a mechanism for users to provide feedback. (Recommendation 5) |
As of July 2024, FCC has revamped educational videos related to the Verifier and made feedback mechanisms more accessible. FCC also noted that there are several updates to the Verifier's online application to improve the website's clarity and ease of use and expects the recommendation to be fully implemented in 2024. When we confirm that FCC has taken additional steps in response to the recommendation, we will provide updated information.
|
| Federal Communications Commission | The Chairman of FCC should convert the Verifier's online application, checklifeline.org, to a ".gov" domain. (Recommendation 6) |
The Federal Communications Commission's (FCC) Lifeline program discounts phone and internet service for eligible low-income consumers. As of June 2020, FCC required consumers nationwide to use the Lifeline National Verifier (Verifier), a centralized process and data system, to check their eligibility for Lifeline. Although consumers can apply for Lifeline through the Verifier's online application, in 2021, we found that consumers may have difficulty identifying the Verifier's online application as a legitimate government service because, at the time of our review, it resided at a ".org" domain, rather than at a ".gov" domain. The ".gov" domain conveys to a user that the website is secure and legitimate, and provides official U.S. government content. According to officials from the General Services Administration who are responsible for ".gov" website domains, federal regulations and guidance require that federal websites, including those operated by other organizations on behalf of federal agencies, use ".gov" domains in most cases. Therefore, we recommended that FCC convert the Verifier's online application, checklifeline.org, to a ".gov" domain. In 2022, we confirmed that FCC officially transitioned the Verifier's online application to NV.FCC.gov. By converting the Verifier's online application to a ".gov" domain, consumers will have greater confidence that the application is being provided on behalf of the federal government and that their confidential personal information needed to complete the online application is secured.
|