WASHINGTON, D.C. – In an apparent rush to dismantle Obama-era rules guaranteeing all internet content is treated equally, the U.S. Federal Communications Commission last week abruptly terminated public comment about its plan to roll back net neutrality.
FCC rules allow the agency to shut off comments during what it calls a “sunshine period” preceding a major vote in order to reflect on the input commissioners have received.
They received a lot of input about this issue: more than 1 million messages. Of those, 97 percent support retaining the Open Internet Order the FCC put in place in 2015, according to data scientist Jeffrey Fossett, who analyzed the submissions (which are public record).
The Open Internet Order is a set of regulations that prohibit internet service providers from blocking, slowing or otherwise discriminating against websites and online services. The Republican-majority commissioners plan to vote Thursday on whether to discard the order. FCC Chairman Ajit Pai, a Trump appointee who previously served as in-house council for Verizon, has been vocal about his belief net neutrality stifles infrastructure investment and innovation.
Evidently, the public does not share Pai’s opinion. Even a poll co-sponsored by cable and internet industry trade association NCTA found the majority of Americans support net neutrality. Only 18 percent of the 2,194 registered voters polled agree with Pai.
Two top Democrats on the House Energy and Commerce Committee want the FCC to extend the upcoming second comment period for at least 30 days so more Americans can weigh in.
“The issue is critically important for the millions of Americans who do not normally participate in FCC proceedings and who cannot afford Washington lawyers to file comments on their behalf,” Rep. Frank Pallone [N.J.] Rep. Mike Doyle [Pa.] wrote in a letter delivered to Pai last Thursday. “We should all agree that their opinions should count nonetheless.”
Granting potential commenters more time to speak would push the second comment period’s deadline from July 17 to at least August 16, meaning the FCC’s final vote likely wouldn’t occur until September, at the earliest. Following that timeline, if commissioners approve a new order that jettisons 2015’s Open Internet Order, the new law probably wouldn’t take effect until early 2018.
