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Lower-Income Home Broadband Users Have Had Trouble Paying for Their Service Amid COVID-19

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According to a recent Pew Research Center survey of U.S. adults, 15 percent of home broadband users reported having trouble paying for their high-speed internet service during the coronavirus outbreak. This finding includes 34 percent of those with household incomes of less than $30,000 a year. A quarter of home broadband users with annual household incomes ranging from $30,000 to just under $50,000 say they have had trouble doing so in the pandemic, as have roughly one-in-ten (8 percent) with household incomes ranging from $50,000 to $74,999. There are also differences by educational attainment, as 22 percent of broadband users who have a high school diploma or less report having had trouble paying for service compared to only eight percent college graduates reporting concerns. The survey also indicated that many Americans also report difficulty paying for other kinds of connectivity, including cell phone service and cable or satellite television during COVID-19, with similar differences by income and education. Many respondents expressed that people without high-speed internet at home are at a major disadvantage during the pandemic when it comes to getting schoolwork done (77 percent) and looking for jobs (66 percent). An earlier study conducted by the Center also found that Hispanic (65 percent) and Black adults (71 percent) are less likely than White adults (80 percent) to have broadband at home.

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