A recent change to E‑Rate funding has removed a reimbursement pathway that supported Wi‑Fi hotspot lending by libraries and schools, prompting immediate program cancellations and local turmoil. Libraries in rural counties that relied on discounted procurement to circulate portable hotspots — used by students, jobseekers and telehealth patients — are being forced to suspend or rethink services. Administrators say the cutback reverses pandemic-era expansions intended to close the digital divide and threatens students’ ability to access remote coursework. The decision has already hit more than 12,500 libraries and tens of thousands of schools that had benefited from the prior funding structure.