Study shows 1.55 million California households with access to broadband can’t afford the service

A new study that’s part of a push to bring broadband internet to low-income American households shows 1.55 million California families that have access to the service can’t afford to pay for it.

The “broadband affordability gap makes up 63% of California’s digital divide,” the San Francisco nonprofit Education Superhighway is reporting.

The federal government is pushing $20 billion in broadband affordability programs, but only 19% of households in California who are eligible for the Emergency Broadband Benefit program have enrolled, the organization said.

It is pushing its No Home Left Offline program, which calls for free Wi-Fi in low-income apartment buildings and urges low-income people to enroll in federal programs for free internet.