The Federal Communications Commission (FCC) has approved a plan to reintroduce net neutrality regulations, which mandate that Internet Service Providers (ISPs) treat all data equally. These regulations were rescinded during the Trump administration in 2017.
This decision comes shortly after the US Senate confirmed President Joe Biden's nominee, Anna Gomez, to the FCC board, effectively breaking the voting deadlock between commissioners leaning to the right and those leaning to the left. Following the Senate's move, Jessica Rosenworcel, the chairwoman of the Federal Communications Commission, announced her intentions to reinstate net neutrality rules, and she has now taken action.
In a statement, the FCC explained that the "Notice of Proposed Rulemaking adopted today seeks comment on classifying fixed and mobile broadband internet service as an essential 'telecommunications' service under Title II of the Communications Act." The proposal also aims to reinstate clear, nationwide open internet rules that prevent ISPs from blocking legal content, throttling speeds, and establishing fast lanes that favor those who can pay for access.
Currently, internet provision falls under Title I of the 1934 Communications Act, categorizing it as an information service with minimal regulation. However, under a Title II classification, ISPs are considered common carriers, similar to telephone and electricity providers, subject to more rigorous oversight and prohibited from throttling data speeds or offering prioritized access.
The FCC justified this move on national security grounds, asserting that Title II classification would help ensure the security of internet provision against potential attacks. It would also apply to natural disasters, where the agency argued that it was irrational for phone services to adhere to resilience standards while internet provision did not.
As part of this decision, the FCC has agreed to eliminate 26 regulatory provisions and over 700 individual regulations. This is a concession to opponents of the reform, including Republican senators and Commissioner Brendan Carr, who was appointed by Republicans and strongly criticized the decision.
Brendan Carr wrote, "The entire debate over whether Title II regulations are necessary or justified was settled years ago. When my FCC colleagues and I voted in 2017 to overturn the Obama Administration's failed, two-year experiment with Title II, activists and politicians alike guaranteed the American public that the internet would quite literally break without it. They predicted that prices for broadband would spike, that you would be charged for each website you wanted to visit, and that the internet itself would slow down. Did any one of those predictions come to pass? Of course not."
The FCC will now initiate an investigation into the matter before making a determination at a later date. With less than a year before the next election, if a Republican candidate wins the presidency, the idea of reinstating net neutrality could potentially be abandoned.
In the meantime, there have been numerous attempts to codify net neutrality into law, but these efforts have yet to yield results. Many consider this legislative route the preferred option, offering a more stable and long-lasting solution compared to the continuous changes in FCC policy.
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