Three Leading Consumer, Low-Income Groups To Urge FCC To Take Further Action To Reform The Wireless Lifeline Program

Representing Over 9,000 Local Groups, Organizations to Tell FCC Why Additional "Common Sense" Steps Are Needed to Preserve Program Vital to Seniors, Vets, Latinos, and Others.

WASHINGTON, Aug. 12, 2013 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- Major U.S. consumer and low-income organizations – the Community Action Partnership (The Partnership), Consumer Action (CA), and the National Consumers League (NCL) – will urge the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) to go farther to address any remaining concerns about wireless Lifeline abuses and ensure that this essential program continues to serve low- income Americans.

During a live, two-way phone-based news conference Tuesday at 1:30 p.m. EDT/10:30 a.m. PDT, the groups will urge the FCC to go beyond the steps enacted by the federal agency that already have reduced spending on Lifeline wireless from $2.2 billion to $1.8 billion. 

While noting that the 2012 changes to the Lifeline wireless program have made the program more efficient, the groups will explain how additional "common sense" action would address any remaining concerns about the Universal Service Fund program.  The Partnership, CA, and NCL will detail how the unfairly maligned Lifeline wireless program is needed for health, safety, and other reasons by millions of seniors, veterans, Latinos, and other low-income Americans.

News event speakers will be:

• Donald W. Mathis,  president & CEO, Community Action Partnership;
• Linda Sherry, director, national priorities, Consumer Action; and
• John Breyault, vice president of public policy, telecommunications & fraud, National Consumers League.

TO PARTICIPATE:  You can join this live, phone-based news conference at 1:30 p.m. EDT/10:30 a.m. PDT on August 13, 2013 by dialing 1 (800) 860-2442. Ask for the "Support for Lifeline Reforms" news event.

CAN'T PARTICIPATE?:  A streaming audio replay of this news event will be available by 5 p.m. EDT on August 13, 2013 at http://www.communityactionpartnership.com/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=33&Itemid=62.

ABOUT THE GROUPS:

Consumer Action is a national non-profit advocacy and education organization that has served consumers since 1971. Consumer Action has a national reputation for multilingual consumer education and advocacy in the fields of credit, banking, privacy, insurance and utilities. Consumer Action's nationwide network of more than 8,000 community-based organizations enables it to reach millions of consumers—in their own languages and in their own communities.

The Community Action Partnership is the nonprofit, national membership organization representing the interests of the 1,100 Community Action Agencies (CAAs) across the country that annually help 17 million low-income Americans achieve economic security.  Whether it's a Head Start program, Weatherization, job training, housing, food bank, energy assistance, financial education, or any of the more than 40 distinct programs, CAAs work to make America a better place to live.

The National Consumers League, founded in 1899, is America's pioneer consumer organization. Our mission is to protect and promote social and economic justice for consumers and workers in the United States and abroad. For more information, visit www.nclnet.org.

SOURCE Consumer Action, Community Action Partnership, and National Consumers League, San Francisco and Washington, D.C.