So you may have heard of the free phone service provided by California Lifeline, but is it real and how it works?
The short answer is “yes”. The California Lifeline Program (California LifeLine) is a state-run initiative designed to help qualified Californians lower their phone bills.
So if you’re a California resident struggling to afford your phone service, this is definitely something worth looking into. Keep reading for all the specifics on eligibility, benefits, how to get started and potential extra perks. By the end, it’s likely that you will have find a bit of extra breathing room in your monthly budget.
Introducing California Lifeline
California LifeLine is a state program that helps eligible households access low-cost or even free home phone and cell phone services. It provides discounts on various fees and service charges related to phone service, including:
Specific Support Amount (Effective on January 1, 2024) – Monthly flat rate service/cell phone service discount of up to $19.00
Up to $39 service connection fee discount
Up to $39 service conversion fee discount for home phone services
Exemption for public purpose program surcharges, CPUC’s user fee, federal excise tax, local franchise taxes, and State 911 tax associated with phone services
Discounts on two telephone lines for teletypewriter users or Deaf and Disabled Telecommunications Program participants.
Eligibility Requirements for California Lifeline Discounts
California Lifeline primarily targets California residents who have limited income, but income is not the only criteria for eligibility. There are two main ways to qualify for California Lifeline through the program.
The first way is by qualifying based on your total annual household income. This includes income (before tax) from all sources and all members of your household, such as wages, social security payments, pensions, rental income, etc.
To be eligible, your total annual household income must be at or below preset annual income limits. The larger your family size, the higher the income limit. For example, the current annual income limit for a two-person family is $31,700, while the income limit for a four-person family is $48,400. These income limits do change annually, but they generally make the program accessible to low-income households.
The second way to qualify is if at least one person in your household is enrolled in a qualifying public assistance program. Eligible public assistance benefits include Medicaid/Medi-Cal, Federal Public Housing Assistance or Section 8, Supplemental Security Income, National School Lunch Program (NSL), Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (TANF) and some tribal assistance programs such as Tribal TANF and Food Distribution Program on Indian Reservations. You can visit the California Lifeline website for a full list of these eligible programs.
Application Process
Applying for the discounted home phone services provided by California LifeLine is quite simple. If you believe you qualify for the discounted service, you can start the application process by contacting your home phone company (or your cell phone service company) if it is an approved California LifeLine provider. Check here for the list of approved service providers.
Once your eligibility is reviewed and confirmed by your phone company, you will receive the application form with an Enrollment Code in a pink envelop by mail within three weeks. Make sure you have collected documentation that proves your eligibility, such as identification card or notice of eligibility letter from a qualifying public assistance program, tax return, income statements or paycheck stubs, and child support documents.
One thing worth noting is that you have to keep paying the full rates for your phone service before your application is approved. You may consider an interest-free payment plan provided by home phone companies to help cover up-front costs such like the service installation fee, service conversion fee, and deposits for your basic home phone service.
The discounts will be applied to your phone bill automatically after you get enrolled. You’ll be refunded the difference between what you were paying and the California Lifeline discounted rates for any applicable monthly service charges and other related service fees. And the discounts are retroactive – meaning the refund will go back to the the date your service began or the date you first requested to be enrolled, whichever is later.
If your bill ends up with a net credit balance of $10 or more after applying the discounts, you can actually request a refund check from your phone company. If the credit is less than $10, the refund will be displayed as a credit on your next bill instead.
California LifeLine Limitations
California LifeLine has a few rules and limitations to prevent abuse or misuse of the program benefits.
One-discount-per-household rule
Every eligible household for California LifeLine can receive only one discount- either for home phone or cell phone service for their primary residence, except for teletypewriter users or participants of the Deaf and Disabled Telecommunications Program.
Meanwhile, it is not allowed to receive the California Lifeline discount from different home phone companies. Violating this rule can have serious consequences for California Lifeline participants. In the worst-case scenario, individuals can be banned from the program, and California Lifeline has the authority to claw back any improperly received benefits.
Enrollment request freeze
According to the California LifeLine Administrator, individuals are not allowed to submit multiple enrollment requests for wireless telephone services at the same time, which means one has to wait a maximum of 30 days before submit another enrollment request to another service provider. There are a few exceptions though. More details can be found here.
Annual renewal
Your California Lifeline benefit needs to be renewed every year. This typically happens on your “anniversary date” – the date your originally signed up for the program. As the day approaches, you will receive a PINK envelope containing the California LifeLine renewal form.
You must handle the California Lifeline renewal process with extreme care and attention. There are a couple of options – you can choose to renew online or by mailing in the completed form along with any required supporting documents.
However, it’s critical that you complete this renewal process by the due date. If you fail to renew on time, or if the renewal form is incomplete or incorrect in any way, you will be removed from the Lifeline program entirely.
This means you’ll lose access to the discounted rates and will have to start paying the regular, full price for your home phone or cell phone service again.
Claim Your Rewards by Applying for Standup Wireless Offers
The benefit of applying for California Lifeline is more than cheaper or free phone services. Now, if you apply for California Lifeline through us, an Authorized Distributor of StandUp Wireless and an eligible telecommunications carrier, you will get more perks:
StandUp Wireless California Offer
- Free Smartphone
- Unlimited Talk
- Unlimited Text
- 6GB of Data
Sounds attractive to you? Drop by one of our stores in your neighborhood today to initiate your California Lifeline application and receive your rewards!