Sixth Circuit Could Kill the FCC's Net Neutrality Rules

CINCINNATI—The U.S. Sixth Circuit Court of Appeals seems poised to completely kill the Federal Communications Commission's (FCC) net neutrality rules that were reinstated earlier this year. Broadband companies and major internet service providers (ISPs) have sued the FCC in several courts in a bid to render the FCC rules unconstitutional and a governmental overreach. An administrative judicial panel consolidated the cases to the Sixth Circuit. While the FCC maintains that net neutrality remains an effective measure to ensure equity in broadband access, the ISPs argue that it's not necessary. In the latest update on the case, two key U.S. lawmakers have filed briefs in support of the broadband industry groups asking to overturn net neutrality. Far-right Sen. Ted Cruz, R-Texas, the ranking member on the Senate Commerce Committee, and conservative Rep. Cathy McMorris Rodgers, R-Wash., chair of the House Energy and Commerce Committee, filed the briefs with the court due to their committees' statutory oversight authority over the agency. “Regulating broadband internet access as a ‘telecommunications service’ would fly in the face of Congress’s objective in passing the law,” both wrote. They cited how a previous law adopted in 1996 was designed to preserve a "competitive market for the internet," unfettered by government regulations. Broadband Breakfast reports a full brief from the FCC. The panel at the Sixth Circuit has given the FCC until September 11 to file. Oral arguments before the panel of judges are slated for late October. The filings claim that the FCC chair, Democratic appointee Jessica Rosenworcel, pushed the rules without any legal justification. A Sixth Circuit panel also wrote that the plaintiffs "were likely to succeed on the merits" of the case because the regulation constituted a question that should be decided by Congress. Broadband trade organizations including groups like USTelecom and CTIA have lauded the Sixth Circuit's panel which said the rules violated standing by a controversial ruling recently adopted by the U.S. Supreme Court. Said ruling overturned the Chevron doctrine. In Chevron, the Supreme Court determined that courts must defer to agencies for interpretations of authority granted to them by acts of Congress. This includes whether the intent of Congress was ambiguous and whether the interpretation is considered to be reasonable and permissible by a court. AVN has reported extensively on the FCC under the Biden White House reinstating net neutrality that eliminates "throttling" on websites that have controversial speech and are subject to the whims of large internet service providers and telecommunications companies, including Verizon, Comcast, AT&T Fiber and others. FCC reinstated net neutrality in April. Sen. Cruz also introduced a resolution in the Senate alongside Sen. Marsha Blackburn, R-Tenn., to gut the measures. The joint resolution was filed under the Congressional Review Act (CRA) in a bid to nullify the net neutrality rules, which were originally slated to enter force earlier this month. Under the act, the Senate and House are given stronger oversight to review the rules and regulations adopted by federal regulatory agencies, like the FCC. Photo: Joseph Gruber (CC BY-NC-ND 2.0)