Pro-regulation activists are staging a “day of action” to tell Congress to sign on to a Congressional Review Act (CRA) that would turn back the clock and reinstate harmful regulations on the internet - rather than taking responsibility to pass legislation preserving a free and open internet themselves. This is a dereliction of duty on Congress’s part. The Title II regulations from the Obama-era FCC are limited, outdated, and only applicable due to a law passed in 1934 - a long, long time before the modern internet existed.
Title II regulations are wrong for the modern internet and will harm American taxpayers. In the mere two years that the Title II regulations were in place, the U.S. saw a steep drop in investment in the telecommunications industry. This leads to more government control over the internet, and worse outcomes for taxpayers.
While activists are framing this as a fight over “net neutrality,” it is anything but. Title II regulations do not guarantee the protections of net neutrality. Only action from Congress can do so. Title II is an outdated regulatory scheme that leads to heavy-handed regulation and policy uncertainty.
As NTU President Pete Sepp wrote recently,
Sens. John Thune (R.-S.D.) and Bill Nelson (D-Fla.), respectively the chair and ranking member of the Senate Commerce Committee, have both agreed in the past that it’s legislation, not FCC regulation, that can preserve net neutrality. Thune has endorsed the principles of net neutrality and pledged to work for legislation, and Nelson has said that Congress must “provide lasting safeguards” for the principles of net neutrality.
Activists are pressuring Republican members who they deem vulnerable to support this dereliction of duty. National Taxpayers Union has urged Congress to actually take responsibility and tackle this issue themselves, rather than reinstate antiquated regulations conceived of in 1934.