Washington – Senators Ed Markey and Ron Wyden have introduced legislation to make Broadband Internet Access Service (BIAS) an express form of “telecommunications service” and thus subject to the protections of so-called net neutrality under Title II of the Communications Act of 1934. Rep. Doris Matsui, D-Calif., has introduced a companion bill in the House.
These short bills would create a legislative mandate for net neutrality, rather than relying on the Federal Communications Commission to reverse its 2017 Internet Freedom Order and find, once again, that BIAS is a Title II service.
The Computer & Communication Industry Association has advocated to preserve net neutrality for more than two decades, and joined public interest groups in a petition in 2019 for the court to rehear the most recent national net neutrality case.
The following can be attributed to CCIA President Matt Schruers:
“Many Americans only have one choice of high speed broadband access provider and thus have nowhere to turn to work, shop, study, and communicate should their service provider limit or deny their access to lawful content and services.
“CCIA remains committed to ensuring that consumers’ access to an open Internet is not slowed, impeded, or de-prioritized. We support efforts to achieve that objective for the Internet ecosystem.”