FCC Begins Process of Resurrecting Net Neutrality

WASHINGTON—The U.S. Federal Communications Commission (FCC) announced that it will immediately start working toward restoring net neutrality rules since the Democrats now have a majority, according to the office of FCC chair Jessica Rosenworcel. Since the FCC now has a full voting panel of five members with the ascension of newly sworn-in commissioner Anna Gomez, the Democratic-leaning commissioners now hold a voting majority. “The internet is too important to our society and economy not to have effective oversight,” reads a fact sheet released by chair Rosenworcel’s office. “However, in 2018, the FCC abdicated its authority over broadband and repealed net neutrality.” Rosenworcel is proposing a measure to let the FCC take initial procedural steps toward re-adopting broadband internet rules to treat web service as “an essential service for American life.” Title II of the Communications Act would be interpreted to order that broadband service be viewed as essential services that are entitled to equal access requirements, like water, power and phone service. Proposed rules will be made available for comment from industry stakeholders and members of the general public. The FCC will hold an initial vote on the net neutrality rulemaking proposal on October 19, 2023, at its monthly meeting. At vote will be the notice of proposed rulemaking. If the vote passes, the rulemaking process will begin, leading to the process for public commentary. Chair Rosenworcel’s rulemaking proposal “seeks to largely return to the successful rules that the commission adopted in 2015.” The move to reinstate net neutrality was long expected after Ajit Pai, the former Republican chair of the commission, resigned at the end of President Donald Trump’s term. Pai, who led the effort to repeal the net neutrality rules adopted during the Obama administration, left the commission evenly split as Democratic President Joe Biden made his return to the White House and the Democrats secured the chairpersonship. Biden was the vice president for Barack Obama throughout the entirety of his eight-year tenure. The impasse lasted for three years, turning the confirmation process to fill the open seat—an affair that is typically uncontroversial—into a political stand-off in the so-called culture wars waged between both parties. Gigi Sohn, a public interest attorney and board member of the Electronic Frontier Foundation, was nominated twice by the Biden administration. She was rebuffed both times due to the efforts of major telecoms and social conservative groups criticizing her for being gay and having a hand in drafting the first net neutrality rules when she served as an aide to chair Tom Wheeler. Anna Gomez was nominated by Biden, and she was confirmed by the U.S. Senate on a vote split down party lines earlier this month. The adult entertainment industry has a stake in the net neutrality debate. Adult industry trade group the Free Speech Coalition has voiced opposition to Ajit Pai's Republican-led repeal of the rule in December 2017. Brendan Carr, one of the two Republican-leaning commissioners currently sitting on the FCC, voted with Pai to repeal net neutrality. Carr was also Pai's legal advisor for a time and served as a private practice telecommunications lawyer at a high-power law firm. Carr announced his opposition to Rosenworcel's notice of proposed rulemaking proposal. "Heading down the path to Title II would not only push vital FCC matters onto the back burner, it would knock many of them off the stove altogether," Carr said.