US House of Representatives to vote on net neutrality bill repealed by the FCC today

Republicans oppose the effort arguing it would grant the FCC too much authority over the internet The Democratic-led US House of Representatives is set to vote on Tuesday on a bill to reinstate landmark net neutrality rules repealed by the Federal Communications Commission under President Donald Trump. The bill mirrors an effort last year to reverse the FCC’s December 2017 order approved on a 3-2 vote that repealed Obama-era rules barring providers from blocking or slowing internet content or offering paid “fast lanes.” The reversal of net neutrality rules was a win for internet providers such as Comcast Corp, AT& T Inc and Verizon Communications, but opposed by companies like Facebook Inc, Amazon.com Inc and Alphabet Inc. Late on Monday, the White House told Congress that if the bill were approved Trump’s advisers would recommend he veto it. Pai, who expressed regret last month about how much attention the net neutrality debate has consumed, suggested restoring FCC oversight would lead to an internet “that works as quickly as your DMV, that runs as reliably as Amtrak and ultimately is as popular as your post office.” House Republican Leader Kevin McCarthy dubbed the effort the “Democrats plan to take over the internet” and suggested the FCC could impose new taxes on internet service like telephone and cable bills. Gigi Sohn, a former senior aide to FCC Chairman Tom Wheeler, who ran the agency when the net neutrality rules were adopted, said the rules ensure “internet users, not broadband providers, decide winners and losers on the Internet.” The Senate, which is controlled by Republicans, voted in May 2018 to reinstate the rules, but the House did not take up the issue before Congress adjourned.