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Just a quarter of eligible households are taking advantage of a federal program to provide students with free or inexpensive internet access, according to a new report released Tuesday.

The $14.2 billion Affordable Connectivity Program, part of the President Joe Biden signed almost a year ago, provides a monthly $30 broadband benefit for low-income families and a one-time $100 voucher for a device. Almost three-fourths of eligible families live in a community where internet service providers are offering free high-speed service for those who qualify. 

But distrust in government and a lengthy application are hampering efforts to increase enrollment, according to the report from EducationSuperHighway, a nonprofit that helps make internet service more affordable for students. Currently, only 13 million of the 51.6 million households eligible have enrolled. 

The Federal Communications Commission, which runs the program, asks for a 鈥渉eavy amount of documentation鈥� from applicants, said Evan Marwell, CEO of the organization. That means many don鈥檛 complete the process and almost half of the applications are rejected due to incorrect documentation.

鈥淓ven though the goal is to close the digital divide, the [agency鈥檚] number one priority is to make sure there is no waste, fraud and abuse in the system,鈥� Marwell said.

Officials have reason to be cautious. Families can apply for the program if a child in the family is the only one eligible. But last month, the agency鈥檚 inspector general released findings on in which internet service providers used the name, birthdate and social security number of the same 4-year-old child to apply for the benefit over 1,000 times and claimed over $365,000 in reimbursements. The case wasn鈥檛 isolated, according to the press release.

The FCC has been working with organizations in states to promote the benefit and launched in August to reach families who already receive housing subsidies. Paloma Perez, press secretary for Chairwoman Jessica Rosenworcel, said the agency seeks feedback from eligible users and is 鈥渃ontinually exploring ways to improve the application and enrollment process based on their input.鈥� 

Officials have also recruited 40,000 鈥渙utreach partners鈥� and hosted more than 700 online and in-person local events to promote the program, she said.

School districts, Marwell added, play a vital role in simplifying the process by informing families whose children qualify for free or reduced-price meals that they automatically qualify for the internet discount.

鈥淲ith one fell swoop, they can overcome that document issue,鈥� he said.

He pointed to districts in and , Massachusetts, as examples of strong efforts to inform families about the program. As a result, enrollment in those two cities is two times the statewide participation rate of 19%. Cities reaching at least 40% enrollment include Buffalo, Cincinnati and Detroit. 

Another barrier to participation is that the , which can take at least a half hour to complete, isn鈥檛 mobile-friendly. A lot of families who lack broadband at home are only accessing the internet through their phones, Marwell said. And it鈥檚 only available in English and Spanish.

鈥淭he site hasn鈥檛 been designed with the people who most need it in mind,鈥� Marwell said. 

But Perez said the agency has enhanced the application to make applying by phone more user-friendly

Along with the report, EducationSuperHighway launched a new that tells parents which documents to gather before applying. The states with higher participation rates, like Ohio, Kentucky and Louisiana, Marwell added, have been better about sending letters to families receiving nutrition assistance to let them know they qualify 

Marwell applauded major internet companies like and for offering $30 plans so families don鈥檛 have to pay additional fees.

The remaining challenge is that companies have been more effective at getting the word out to existing customers who qualify than to those who don鈥檛 have access.

States and cities, 鈥渞eally need to do the work to get to the unconnected,鈥� Marwell said. 鈥淚f all you have is access on your phone, you鈥檙e unconnected.鈥�

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