The FCC’s Wireline Competition Bureau (WCB) has released a Public Notice announcing that its National Lifeline Eligibility Verifier (National Verifier) will soft launch on December 16, 2019 in five new jurisdictions. Specifically, ETCs in Florida, Illinois, Minnesota, Ohio, and Wisconsin will no longer be able to begin recertifications of Lifeline subscribers and must finish any currently open recertifications outside of the National Verifier no later than February 21, 2020. Meanwhile, USAC will begin subscriber verifications in these five states using the National Verifier during the soft launch period. Between February and August of 2019, the WCB announced the soft launch and/or official launch of the National Verifier in dozens of U.S. jurisdictions. The National Verifier consumer portal can be found at www.checklifeline.org.
