U.S. lawmakers seek to overturn FCC's repeal of net neutrality
Last June, the FCC voted along party lines to remove net neutrality from the books. This was the Obama-era set of rules that forced ISPs and wireless carriers to treat all streamed content the same. In other words, a company that streams video content would not be allowed to pay a carrier money to get a "fast lane" to subscribers. Perhaps just as important, the rules prevented ISPs and carriers from blocking streamed content that they philosophically disagreed with.
Subsequent polls showed that the majority of Americans want net neutrality. Additionally, FCC chairman Ajit Pai, appointed to the position by President Trump, has admitted that the commission received interference from Russia during the time period when the FCC was seeking comments on whether to eliminate net neutrality. Several states, including California, have since passed legislation that returns net neutrality inside their borders, although the Justice Department could sue to overturn the new state laws.
Instead of slowly bringing back net neutrality piecemeal, state-by-state, Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi (D-Ca) said Monday that she will present a bill on Wednesday called the "Save the Internet Act," according to The Hill, and the same bill will be introduced in the Senate as well. Whether these bills will have enough votes to pass the House and Senate is unclear, and even if they do get past both chambers, a final bill faces a presidential veto.
Last month, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia heard arguments from 22 state attorneys general and the AG of Washington D.C. in favor of overturning the FCC's repeal of net neutrality. The FCC argued to keep the status quo, and the court will make its decision this summer.
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