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The pandemic showed teachers, students, parents and senior citizens how important it is to have access to the internet.

At the Redmond School District, about 1,400 students required hotspots, a pocket-sized mobile router used to create an internet connection to continue learning.

Likewise, at the Bend-La Pine School District, more than 1,000 hotspots were issued to students.

The internet is a dependable source of information for families being asked to shoulder more of the responsibility for learning and seeking help. Often it’s the first thing to be erased from a tight budget as it’s seen as a luxury. But access is not assured to all in Central Oregon due to a lack of financial support from the region’s most prominent internet provider.

COVID-19 showed internet access is a necessity, said Scott Cooper, NeighborImpact executive director. At the start of the pandemic, the nonprofit that helps families in need, from housing to food, in Central Oregon, switched to an online platform to offer services.

“That kept assistance rolling,” Cooper said. “Now that we are coming out of pandemic conditions, we’re finding that the internet applications made aid more widely available. “

Using the internet actually helped the nonprofit reach people by eliminating barriers like child care and transportation.

“Clients who live in more remote areas can have the same access as clients who live near an office,” Cooper said. “Being able to use a phone or cellular connection to file a housing application or an application for rent assistance or to look up a location for an open food bank is a time saver for clients and spreads relief to more people and bigger geography.

“That adds equity to the system by allowing everyone to access services.”

Broadband Now, an independent broadband availability website, reports 96% of residents in Deschutes County has internet access. Access sinks in both Crook and Jefferson counties to 69% and 77%, according to the website’s 2021 data.

To help residents connect, the federal government established the Emergency Broadband Benefit program, a six-month-long program for low-income consumers. Under the program, families on tribal lands can receive up to $75 a month from a $3.2 million fund. The program was announced May 12.

Not all internet service providers, however, participate in the Federal Communication Commission program. In Bend, BendBroadband is not participating and instead is referring customers who need financial assistance for internet access to a program called Connect2Compete, said Kit Beyer, TDS Telecommunications LLC director of external affairs and communications.

However, the parent company of BendBroadband, TDS Telecom, is participating in other areas, Beyer said in an email.

“BendBroadband is not (participating) as it has Connect2Compete, which is a well-established and community-focused program that we are proud to deliver to area residents,” said Beyer. “Connect2Compete was established before the pandemic and will continue to exist after it is over.”

The BendBroadband program relies upon nonprofit agencies to process applications. Upon approval, low-income families can have the installation fees waived and pay $9.95 a month for two years, including the rental of the wireless modem, according to the company’s website.

The program’s monthly data usage allotment is 250 gigabytes. The download speed is 25 megabytes per second downloads, according to BendBroadband’s website.

About 149 customers are participating, said Beyer.

The program is rarely offered to clients by Habitat for Humanity, one of the local nonprofits on the BendBroadband site.

“The program is not helpful as it is not enough broadband for families who have more than one child or who were working from home,” said DeeDee Johnson, Habitat for Humanity vice president of Homeowner Services. “And you have to be a new customer of BendBroadband to participate.”

Typically when Habitat for Humanity is helping families with permanent housing, it doesn’t help with providing internet access.

Some students are still using school-provided hotspots, said Sheila Miller, Redmond School District spokeswoman. To determine the need, the school district polled parents and purchased equipment.

“Secondary students still have the hotspots because we wanted to support teacher conferences,” Miller said in an email. “Most have been returned now that we’re back in full-time, in-person instruction.”

To apply for assistance with the Emergency Broadband Benefit program, find an internet service provider in your Zip code by going to data.usac.org/publicreports/CompaniesNearMe/Download/Report. To be eligible only one person from a household needs to demonstrate low income, participate in a free and reduced-priced school meal program or SNAP, Medicaid or Lifeline, receive a federal Pell Grant during the current year, suffered a job loss or furlough due to the pandemic and the household income must be below $99,000 for single filers and $198,000 for joint filers.