The Death of Net Neutrality Is a Bad Omen

In the end, the return of net neutrality was short-lived: Today, the Sixth Circuit Court of Appeals struck down rules introduced by the Biden administration that would have prevented internet service providers from favoring some apps or websites over others. The three-judge panel frequently cited Loper Bright Enterprises v. Raimondo, the recent Supreme Court decision that overturned a legal doctrine known as Chevron deference. “Unlike past challenges that the DC Circuit considered under Chevron, we no longer afford deference to the FCC’s reading of the statute,” the ruling reads. Critics of Chevron argued that Congress too often delegated the work of interpreting policies to unelected bureaucrats working for federal agencies, says John Bergmayer, legal director at the consumer advocacy nonprofit Public Knowledge. “Now we have the alternative: The first panel of judges to hear an issue can set nationwide policy.” There’s at least one way out of this imbalance of power, Bergmayer says: Congress can pass a bill that explicitly says agencies have the authority to interpret laws.