House Passes Anti-Net Neutrality Bill

This morning, the House of Representatives passed a bill (H.R. 2666) that would make it practically impossible for the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) to enforce the 2015 Open Internet Order. Earlier this week, OTI joined 49 other organizations urging Congress to reject the bill, which the White House has threatened to veto. The legislation would undermine the FCC’s ability to:

• Review monopoly charges and other unjust and unreasonable business practices;

• Give consumers more control over their online privacy;

• Enforce merger conditions that create discounts for low-income Americans;

• Address the harmful effects of data caps and zero-rating plans;

• Protect consumers and online businesses from interconnection-related congestion.

The following statement can be attributed to Joshua Stager, policy counsel for New America’s Open Technology Institute:

“We are disappointed that members of Congress voted for this harmful legislation. H.R. 2666 is a clear effort to roll back the net neutrality rules that millions of Americans asked for last year. Going far beyond its stated purpose, the bill threatens the FCC’s ability to protect consumers, small businesses, and the Internet economy. We welcome the White House’s veto threat and urge the Senate to reject this bill.”