Nearly half of Minnesota Lifeline customers were automatically de-enrolled from...
Nearly half of Minnesota Lifeline customers were automatically de-enrolled from the program, the Minnesota Public Utilities Commission said Thursday (http://bit.ly/16bZMc9). It described inquiries from residents baffled by their bills and noted that in 2012, “33,000 or 46 percent of about…
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71,000 Lifeline customers failed to return signed certification forms with required information to their service providers and were subsequently removed from the programs,” which occurred as part of federal reform to the low-income subsidy program. “While it is important to maintain the integrity of the programs by confirming that the benefits are extended only to those who truly qualify, it is also important that those who are eligible receive the assistance they need,” PUC Chair Beverly Jones Heydinger said in a statement. The PUC worried many customers eligible for these benefits, from both Lifeline and the Telephone Assistance Plan, lost them due to confusion over the forms and advised state residents on how to restore the benefits. The Montana Public Service Commission reported similar confusion among state residents and mass de-enrollment last month (CD Feb 27 p21).