June 20, 2025

Dear Representative,

We, the undersigned organizations, urge you to support H.J.Res. 33, the resolution of disapproval under the Congressional Review Act to permanently overturn President Biden’s wasteful and unlawful use of E-Rate funds.

Introduced by Rep. Russ Fulcher (R-Idaho), H.J.Res. 33 and its Senate companion, S.J.Res. 7, would nullify the partisan FCC edict that violates clear federal law and increases taxes on working families. CRA passage would also ensure that a future Democrat FCC could not pass a similar rule.

Last month, the Senate passed Senator Ted Cruz’s (R-Texas) companion S.J.Res. 7 with unified Republican support. The Trump administration stated that the Biden-era decision “effectively caused the FCC to act as a social welfare agency rather than a regulator of communications infrastructure.” FCC Chairman Carr also praised the resolution for remedying spending “in the absence of any authorization from Congress.”

The expansion was also bad policy. Taking away parents’ ability to monitor their children’s screentime and internet habits with government-issued hotspots is an unjustified invasion into the homes of millions of Americans. Doing so on the taxpayer’s dime, turning parents’ own hard-earned money against the rules they establish for the good order and successful nurturing of their own households is insulting.

The Biden hotspot rule is also wasteful, duplicative, and harmful to rural broadband buildout. Hotspot eligibility is not limited to children who lack internet at home, which could overrun the program with affluent families looking to save on internet costs by diffusing them to their neighbors. Additionally, this hotspot welfare scheme overlaps with other federal broadband spending, including the $42 billion Broadband, Equity, Access and Deployment (BEAD) program. This doesn’t just waste taxpayer dollars; it also jeopardizes the efforts of rural providers to build out infrastructure in unserved areas.

The Biden hotspot rule finally threatens to raise the Universal Service Fund “contribution rate,” an effective tax on working families through their phone bills. The current USF contribution rate is already a staggering 36.6 percent. Using USF funds for hotspots threatens to raise this rate even higher, increasing working families’ tax burdens while destabilizing other USF programs.

We urge you to vote YES on H.J. Res. 33 and S.J. Res. 7 to overturn this costly, unconstitutional rule that undermines parental authority over their own children.

Sincerely,

Grover Norquist
President, Americans for Tax Reform

Tom Schatz
President, Council for Citizens Against Government Waste

Nathan Leamer
Executive Director, Digital First Project

Steve Chartan
Vice President, Government Relations, Heritage Action for America

Clare Morell (individual signatory)
Fellow, Ethics and Public Policy Center

James Erwin
Executive Director, Digital Liberty 

Phil Kerpen
President, American Commitment

Ryan Ellis
President, Center for a Free Economy

Chuck Muth
President, Citizen Outreach

Paul Gessing,
President, Rio Grande Foundation 

David S. McFadden
President, Competitive Enterprise Institute

Nicole Neily
Executive Director, Parents Defending Education Action

Brent Gardner
Chief Government Affairs Officer, Americans for Prosperity

Lorenzo Montanari
Executive Director, Property Rights Alliance

Bartlett Cleland
Executive Director, Innovation Economy Alliance

Seton Motley
President, Less Government

David Williams
President, Taxpayer Protection Alliance 

Evan Swarztrauber (individual signatory)
Senior Fellow, Foundation for American Innovation