FCC asks for limited net neutrality comments, but Rosenworcel says “make noise”

21 February 2020 by Steve Blum
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The Federal Communications Commission will tweak its network neutrality rules, such as they are, to answer objections made by the federal appeals court based in Washington, D.C. last year. That court – aka the D.C. circuit – largely upheld the FCC’s 2017 repeal of network neutrality rules, but sent a few bits back to the agency for more work and threw out a blanket preemption of state and local regulations.

In a notice issued earlier this week, the FCC asked for comments on the public safety, lifeline and pole attachment issues flagged by the D.C. circuit. The FCC has to figure out how to square its declaration that broadband isn’t a telecommunications service with its utility pole regulations that, seemingly, limit attachment privileges to telecoms companies. It’s looking for public comment on, among other things, whether “broadband-only providers” will still have “access to poles”.

Limited or not, commissioner Jessica Rosenworcel, a democrat, said network neutrality advocates should respond to the FCC’s request for comments

Today, the FCC is seeking comment on how best to move forward. My advice? The American public should raise their voices and let Washington know how important an open internet is for every piece of our civic and commercial lives. The agency wrongfully gave broadband providers the power to block websites, throttle services, and censor online content. The fight for an open internet is not over. It’s time to make noise.”

The FCC’s authority over utility pole attachments doesn’t extend to California, or to other states that have established their own regulations. The California Public Utilities Commission will have to sort those issues out here.

California also has its own network neutrality rules. Those are on hold until all the federal court challenges are settled. It’s a done deal at the appellate level, but the organisations that challenged the FCC’s net neutrality repeal can make a final appeal to the federal supreme court. The deadline for doing that is still several weeks away.