A new report from the Federal Communications Commission’s Office of the Inspector General revealed that California, Texas, and Oregon obtained $5 million in reimbursements for the Lifeline program for 116,000 dead people.
“Most troubling, at least 16,774 of the deceased Lifeline individuals were first claimed by a Lifeline provider after they died,” the OIG wrote. “Providers claimed more than $500,000 in Lifeline subsidies for purported service to these subscribers.”
California alone provided phone and internet service to more than 94,000 dead people.