New Act Mandates Single-Line Internet Price on Bills, Bans Hidden Fees for Broadband Service

The aptly named Lower Internet Costs Act is a straight-up consumer transparency effort aimed squarely at your monthly broadband bill. Essentially, this bill tells internet service providers (ISPs) that the days of burying mandatory fees and advertising a low rate only to hit you with a much higher total are over. The core of the bill is simple: it forces the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) to create new rules within 90 days requiring ISPs to display the total, final price for your internet service—what the bill calls the "aggregate price"—as a single, clear line item on your bill and in all advertising (Sec. 2).

The End of the Hidden Fee Shell Game

For anyone who has signed up for a $49.99 internet plan only to see a $65 bill due to mysterious "regulatory recovery fees" or "network maintenance charges," this is the section you care about. The bill specifically bans providers from charging "covered fees," which are defined as charges related to network maintenance, infrastructure building, compliance with state regulations, or local government rights-of-way fees (Sec. 2). If you’re a provider, you can’t charge these anymore. If you’re a customer, this means those mandatory add-ons that always jacked up the price should disappear, or at least be baked into that single aggregate price, making comparison shopping much easier. This is a big deal for anyone trying to budget, whether you’re a remote worker relying on stable internet or a contractor trying to manage business expenses.

No More Intro Rate Surprises

Another major pain point this bill tackles is the bait-and-switch introductory rate. You know the drill: you sign up for a cheap rate, forget about the fine print, and six months later, your bill jumps 40%. Under this Act, if a provider advertises or bills you an introductory rate, they must notify you twice—once about 60 days out and again 30 days out—exactly when the low rate ends and what the new, higher price will be (Sec. 2). They also have to clearly state the post-introductory price in the initial advertisements. This means no more guessing games about when your bill is going to spike, giving you a full two months to shop around or call for a better deal before the increase hits.

The Fine Print and What’s Excluded

While this is a win for transparency, there are a few details to note. First, the FCC has the power to specify certain charges that don't have to be included in that main aggregate price total, though these must be charges not related to the actual service. Second, if you buy your internet as part of a bundle (like internet and TV), the rules still apply to the portion of the cost specifically for the broadband service, and the ban on covered fees applies to the whole bundle (Sec. 2). Finally, and this is important: these new transparency rules do not apply to old, "legacy" or "grandfathered" plans that the company no longer offers to new customers. If you’ve been on the same plan for ten years, you might not see the benefit of the single-line price mandate, though the ban on covered fees applies across the board.