Phone bill assistance program and free government phones in New Mexico.
Financial assistance for paying phone or cell bills is offered in New Mexico or get a free phone, tablet, or wireless devoice. The programs are focused on very low income families, senior citizens or the disabled. In general, in order to get a free iPhone, Samsung Galaxy, tablet or cell phone service, the family needs a low-income, a senior or to be on government benefits. Find phone bill assistance or free phones in NM.
The assistance is offered directly by phone companies, such as Verizon, AT&T, T Mobile, and others in partnership with the government. Applications are available in Spanish too. In general, the total household income of the applicant needs to be close to poverty levels (based on the number of people living in the home)
Find where and how to get assistance, including free home or phone service in New Mexico below. Resources such as Lifeline as well as Link-Up provide struggling residents savings on their monthly phone bills, credits to an account, a free iPhone or even iPad tablet, and assistance in paying for connection fees.
NM Lifeline program
There are various limits in place as well as income guidelines that need to be met. The program is administering by all of the major landline and wireless companies that operate in the state. However a family can only apply to Lifeline (or its equivalents) at one provider. They can also only receive help in paying one phone bill. So the government benefit will not allow households to enroll more than one unit into the program.
The most common form of assistance is the New Mexico Lifeline program. This will give people a discount on their service or a free government phone. While the monthly credit will vary, it may range from $5 to $20 per month depending on the family, their income, and overall financial condition.
Lifeline will cover either landlines (standard, traditional home phones) or cellular service or even give a free smartphone or wireless device. There are also dozens of companies that participate. There are of course the major ones, such as AT&T, Verizon, and Sprint. But many of the small companies also enroll into Lifeline, including Century Link, Frontier Communications, Sacred Wind, Plateau Telacom, and many others. Some companies, like Q Link, SafeLink and Assurance give out free phones to low-income families too - even a Samsung or Apple iPhone.
Link-Up is another federal funded telephone assistance program. This will help very low income families pay the costs associated with activating the account. The maximum dollar amount of aid given will be $30, which will be in the form of a credit placed on their account. Some of the companies, such as SafeLink Wireless, may also give the New Mexico resident a free cell phone as part of this program.
Many families in New Mexico, such as senior citizens or the disabled living on a fixed income, often struggle to get a phone for their home or apartment. The up-front fees can often be prohibitive. This is especially true for those people that live on a pension, SSI payments, or other benefits. To address this need, Link-Up will pay some of the bills involved.
Families that are on welfare or public benefits, will generally automatically be eligible. There is also financial help to pay phone bills for immigrants and Spanish speakers in New Mexico. So if a household gets Public Housing / Section 8, Supplemental Security Income (SSI), Medicaid, food stamps, or TANF grants, then Link-Up is an option for them. Or they may also be qualified for Life-Line under the correct circumstances.
More unique to New Mexico is a telephone assistance program known as Tribal Lifeline. This service is only focused on residents that live on a tribal reservation or on pueblo land. The benefits provided here to very low income families are significant. Their monthly phone or cell phone bill will be reduced to as low as $1 per month. As with all of the other options referenced above, it only covers one phone per home.
Applying for free phones or financial help with bills in New Mexico
The applications for a free phone or financial aid for bills are processed directly with the phone company. This means that the person needs to call a wireless or telecommunications company, such as AT&T, T-Mobile or Verizon, and tell them they want to apply for assistance. The customer service representatives will review the application and proceed accordingly.
If a resident feels their application for Lifeline s being denied based on circumstances other than merit, they can dial the Consumer Relations Division of the New Mexico Public Regulation Commission, and that phone number is 1-888-427-5772.
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