ROCHESTER, N.Y., May 11, 2021 – Greenlight Networks, the fastest fiber-to-the-home (FTTH) provider in New York State, announces its approval by the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) to participate in its Emergency Broadband Benefit (EBB) program. The program, which officially launches tomorrow, May 12, provides a subsidy for broadband services to eligible households, as part of the Federal government’s efforts to reduce expenses for those struggling due to the on-going pandemic.

The $3.2B Emergency Broadband Benefit program provides a discount of up to $50 per month toward broadband services. As Greenlight Network’s broadband services are $50 per month, this means eligible households can receive fiber internet at 500 Mbps at no cost to them. Additionally, Greenlight Networks has committed to waiving the $100 installation fee for those that qualify.

“We live in a connected world and the pandemic made that reality very clear,” said Rochester Mayor Lovely Warren. “Everyday tasks like work, school, and healthcare are now online. Families without internet access struggle to complete these daily tasks. The Emergency Broadband Benefit Program will help bridge the digital divide in our community and alleviate the worry of choosing between paying a broadband bill and paying rent or buying groceries. I am thankful for Greenlight’s commitment to building their network across Rochester and accelerating the progress of the program.”

“Anyone who has worked or learned from home this past year knows many low cost/low-speed internet access options are not sufficient when multiple family members are using several connected devices simultaneously,” said Greenlight’s founder and CEO, Mark Murphy. “This program will directly and immediately impact households where the cost of internet service has been a barrier.”

Greenlight’s services through this program are currently available to those within Greenlight’s established network. For a map of locations, visit www.greenlightnetworks.com. Those outside this network are encouraged to express interest in Greenlight bringing its FTTH internet to their area by signing up on its website.

“Access to reliable internet service is essential especially during the pandemic when many have been forced to work, learn, access healthcare, and connect to the world from their homes,” said U.S. Senator Charles Schumer. “That’s why, as a lead negotiator of the December Covid relief bill, I fought to secure $3.2 billion for the FCC Emergency Broadband Benefit program so that financially struggling households, seniors, students, job-seekers and more can receive up to $50/month to pay for internet service during the pandemic. I commend Greenlight Network’s participation in this program so that eligible households in their service area can receive quality broadband internet at virtually no-cost while helping families across Monroe County and the City of Rochester recover from the pandemic.”

HOW FCC’S EBB WORKS: Emergency Broadband Benefit enrollment begins tomorrow, May 12, 2021. Eligible households can enroll by visiting www.GetEmergencyBroadband.org. Additional information about the Emergency Broadband Benefit is available at www.fcc.gov/broadbandbenefit, or by calling 833-511-0311 between 9 am and 9 pm any day of the week.

Once approved for the program they will receive a subscriber ID number that is then provided to Greenlight when placing an order for services. As Greenlight Network is reimbursed for facilitating the services through the FCC, no payment is required from the customer.

ELIGIBILITY: A household is eligible for the Emergency Broadband Benefit program if one member of the household meets at least one of the criteria below.

• Has an income that is at or below 135% of the Federal Poverty Guidelines or participates in certain assistance programs, such as SNAP, Medicaid or the FCC’s Lifeline program;
• Approved to receive benefits under the free and reduced-price school lunch program or the school breakfast program, including through the USDA Community Eligibility Provision, in the 2019-2020 or 2020-2021 school year;
• Received a Federal Pell Grant during the current award year;
• Experienced a substantial loss of income through job loss or furlough since February 29, 2020 and the household had a total income in 2020 at or below $99,000 for single filers and $198,000 for joint filers.

About Greenlight Networks, LLC: Greenlight Networks is an ultra-high-speed, broadband service provider, offering residential and small business customers Internet speeds up to 2 Gigabit per second. Greenlight Networks was founded in 2011 in Rochester, N.Y. Tom Golisano acquired a controlling interest in Greenlight Networks in mid-2018. Since then, Greenlight has tripled its staff and brought high-speed fiber internet to nearly 50,000 homes in 13 municipalities. The company builds, owns and operates its fiber-optic networks to provide amazingly fast Internet connections to its customers. For more information on the company, visit GreenlightNetworks.com or find it on Facebook.com/GreenlightNetworks, and @GreenlightFiber on Twitter.