Closing the Gap Between the Digital Divide

Office of Data Analytics and Business Intelligence (DBI) | August 29th, 2023

The Affordable Connectivity Dashboard

The Office of Data Analytics and Business Intelligence in partnership with the City Manager's Office has developed a dashboard to understand and track the enrollment of the Affordable Connectivity Program or ACP and identify locations in Dallas who may benefit from this program based on their current internet connectivity status. The ACP is a federally funded program that assists those who qualify in lowering their internet bill. To qualify, a household must meet one of two requirements: be currently enrolled and receiving federal aid in the form of SNAP, Medicaid, Pell grants or other federal aid programs, or must be below the 200% Poverty Guideline threshold set by the federal government. If you or someone you know meet these qualifications you may apply for this program here.

Purpose of the Dashboard

The dashboard is a tool to view relevant information quickly. We will go into how to navigate through the dashboard below. The digital divide data is obtained from the Census Bureau's American Community Survey and will be updated annually. Enrollment is collected from the ACP Enrollment and Claims tracker and is updated monthly. This data provides a count of how many households are currently enrolled in the program. The ACP Dashboard can be used to visualize the locations where enrollment is highest and where more enrollment is needed. It is our hope that this tool is used by the public as well as city officials to better understand  and address the digital divide in Dallas. 

What is the Digital Divide?

  • The Digital Divide is the gap between those who can afford and connect to highspeed internet and those who cannot. 
  • Bridging the digital divide will allow people access to the internet at an affordable cost.
  • Students will be able to attend classes and complete assignments at home, apply to jobs, and remain connected to the world.  
  • Closing the Digital Divide in Dallas does not just mean providing internet access; it means opening the door to a new world of possibilities and opportunities, previously out of reach, all with in your home.

Where to find the dashboard

To locate the dashboard you can click here or go to the Digital Equity Home page at dallascityhall.com. Once there click the ACP Enrollment dropdown and select the ACP Enrollment Dashboard.

How to use the Dashboard 

In this section we will go over how to use and navigate the Affordable Connectivity Program Enrollment Dashboard. The dashboard is broken into three main parts. The big authoritative number (BAN) cards at the top show quick information on connectivity, and enrollment. The two maps at the center of the page give a visual representation of the digital divide and the enrollment of ACP across the City of Dallas. The bubble chart at the bottom left of the dashboard highlights the census tracts with the highest number of people under 18 who have a computer but no internet. And the bubble chart at the bottom right of the dashboard shows the ZIP codes in Dallas with the highest ACP enrollment numbers. If you have any questions on the dashboard or about the program, you can hover over the two question marks at the top of the page which give detailed information of frequently asked questions in English and Spanish.

How to use the FAQ and application button 

At the top of the Dashboard, you will see two question marks and a "Click to apply for a reduced internet bill" button. You can hover or click the question marks to reveal a tooltip with additional information about the program and the contents of the dashboard. To apply for the program, click the "Click to apply" button next to the FAQ buttons. This will take you directly to the application page. 

How to use the BAN cards

The Big Authoritative Number or BAN cards are below the title card on the dashboard. These number cards have important metrics on the status of the digital divide and ACP enrollment in Dallas. Hover over the BAN cards to display a tooltip that offers more information on each card such as how we calculated the data and a trend line on the number of enrolled households in Dallas. 

How to navigate the Blue Internet Connectivity map

The blue map is the internet connectivity map of Dallas. This map shows the visual representation of the digital divide. We achieved this by selecting metrics that showed the percentage of households with broadband internet, the percentage of people under the age of 18 with computers and internet and the percentage of households who do not only rely on cellular data for an internet connection. By showing where in Dallas people are most connected we can also see where in Dallas people are least connected. Those areas are depicted by the lighter colored blue in the map. The lighter regions are the ones who may need the ACP the most. 
The bubble chart at the bottom shows the number of people under the age of 18 with a computer but NO internet or only Dial-up at home. They are arranged by census tract from greatest to least. The number below the bubble shows how many people in that census tract fall into this category. Ideally we would like to see zeros under each bubble meaning that every person under the age of 18 has a computer in their house AND highspeed internet at home.
Use the filters at the top of the map to select your ZIP code and/or Census Tract. The map will zoom into your selection to show specific data about your ZIP code.

How to navigate the Green ACP Enrollment map

The green map is the number of households who are currently enrolled in the Affordable Connectivity Program. This map is showing only ZIP code data. You can select your ZIP code from the dropdown or type it in. The tooltip shows a line chart of past enrollment in that ZIP code. 
The bubble chart at the bottom of this map shows the top ZIP codes with the most enrollment. The first number under the bubble is the ZIP code and the second number is the count of enrolled households within that ZIP code.

Data collection

We plan to update the digital divide data annually with the release of each new year’s ACS data. We plan to update the ACP enrollment data monthly. We would like to thank all groups supporting us in this project including the GIS team and the City Manager’s Office.