On 10/7/2010 2:50 PM, DGDevin wrote:

"Gordon Shumway" wrote in message
...

Here's where you should have gotten your new phone.

https://www.safelinkwireless.com/Enr...blic/Home.aspx

That way if you were too lazy to work our great leader in Washington
fixed it so you could get a free phone and free service at the expense
of the tax paying citizens.


Did you read your own link?

https://www.safelinkwireless.com/Enr.../benefits.aspx

There is no "Obama phone" or other newly created federal program to
provide free cell phones. As you may know, this is a myth that is now
circulating on the Web via email and blog sites. It has been thoroughly
debunked by independent groups. (See for example: FactCheck.org at
http://www.factcheck.org/2009/10/the-obama-phone/, which notes:
"Low-income households have been eligible for discounted telephone
service for more than a decade. But the program is funded by telecom
companies, not by taxes, and the president has nothing to do with it."

The federal "Lifeline" program was created during the Reagan
Administration. Lifeline is a federal program created by the Reagan era
Federal Communications Commission (FCC) in 1984. The program was
enhanced under Telecommunications Act of 1996, which was supported on a
broadly bipartisan basis in Congress. The FCC's Low Income Program of
the Universal Service Fund, which is administered by the Universal
Service Administrative Company (USAC), is designed to ensure that
quality telecommunications services are available to low-income
customers at just, reasonable, and affordable rates. Lifeline support
reduces eligible low-income consumers' monthly charges for basic
telephone service.

Thanks to SafeLink, Lifeline support is now available for wireless
phones. Traditionally, the Lifeline program was only available as a
discount on a consumer's landline telephone bill. SafeLink Wireless was
created by TracFone Wireless, Inc. when the Federal Communications
Commission (FCC) recently approved the company to offer Lifeline -- a
public assistance program that ensures telephone service is available
and affordable for low-income subscribers. SafeLink Wireless applies the
Universal Service Fund subsidy to an allotment of free airtime minutes
and TracFone provides the wireless handset at the company's expense.
Instead of receiving a subsidized monthly telephone bill for Lifeline
service, SafeLink converts the total amount of discounted service into
minutes each month for one year. The cell phone offers in-demand
features: voicemail, text, three-way calling, call waiting, caller ID
and access to 911.

SafeLink phones are not paid for by taxpayers or the federal government.
TracFone Wireless pays for the phones and also the cost of promoting its
SafeLink program to make sure that eligible consumers know about the
program.

But that would be incorrect. I posted this earlier in this thread:

The USF (Universal Service Fund) is used to pay for the program and the
USF is a mandatory tax on carriers who typically pass it on to the end
user as a universal service charge.


Here is the cite right from the tax collector:

"Contribution Factor & Quarterly Filings

Proposed contribution factor for the fourth quarter 2010 is 0.129 or
12.9 percent.

Contribution Factor: Telecommunications companies must pay a percentage
of their interstate end-user revenues to the Universal Service Fund.
This percentage is called the contribution factor. The contribution
factor changes four times a year (quarterly) and is increased or
decreased depending on the needs of the Universal Service programs. You
can read more about the contribution factor in the FCC's Fact Sheet on
Universal Service."

http://www.fcc.gov/omd/contribution-factor.html




SafeLink Wireless is making the vision of universal access to
telecommunications services for all Americans a reality. As of October
2009, SafeLink has over 2 million customers and is available in 31
states - Alabama, Arkansas, Connecticut, DC, Delaware, Florida, Georgia,
Illinois, Louisiana, Maine, Maryland, Massachusetts, Michigan,
Mississippi, Missouri, Nevada, New Hampshire, New Jersey, New York,
North Carolina, Ohio, Pennsylvania, Puerto Rico, Rhode Island, South
Carolina, Tennessee, Texas, Virginia, Washington, West Virginia and
Wisconsin. Today, there are over 1,700 companies in the United States
currently providing discounted telephone service. But, thanks to its
extensive outreach promoting SafeLink, TracFone Wireless is one of the
largest providers of Lifeline services in the United States, second only
to AT&T.

Only certain Americans are eligible for SafeLink. Eligibility guidelines
vary by state but in general individuals qualify if they participate in
a public assistance program such as Food Stamps, Medicaid, Supplemental
Security Income (SSI), Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (TANF),
Low Income Home Energy Assistance Program (LIHEAP), National Free School
Lunch, Federal Housing/Section 8 Assistance, or if they do not receive
any of these public assistance programs, they may also qualify based on
total household gross monthly income. Customers can learn more or apply
by calling 1-800-SAFELINK or visiting www.SafeLink.com

Your exact benefits, including the number of free Minutes you will
receive, depend on the state you live in.