What exactly is net neutrality?
Net neutrality is a key principle of free and fair Internet use. Essentially, if net neutrality is in place, all Internet traffic must be treated equally by your telecom provider.
This means that whether you are watching Netflix, playing video games online with your friends, or checking your social media accounts, your data is treated uniformly as it travels through networks. Your ISP can’t take money from some streaming services to deliver them faster than others, or offer to speed up some of your services if you pay them additional money. Under net neutrality, you’re paying for full-speed access to the Internet and everything on it.
What happened to our net neutrality protections?
Five years ago, the FCC under the leadership of Ajit Pai overturned our net neutrality protections and removed the FCC’s authority to regulate broadband under Title II of the Communications Act.3
Not only did removing net neutrality open the floodgates to allow providers like Comcast and Verizon to interfere with our Internet access, this decision made it so that the FCC no longer had power to meaningfully set rules for these cable giants.4,5
How do we get net neutrality — and other protections — back?
This summer, Senators Markey & Wyden and Representative Matsui introduced the Net Neutrality and Broadband Justice Act in Congress. This legislation would give authority back to the FCC to regulate broadband, and in turn, protect us from abusive practices by telecom giants — including violations of net neutrality.6
While a key step in the right direction, this legislation can't do it alone; we need a fully functional FCC with the teeth to protect people in America from telecom giants.
Right now, the FCC’s fifth — and tiebreaking — seat is vacant. Without a commissioner there to break the deadlock, the commission hasn’t been able to do its job making decisions that would ensure affordable and accessible Internet for all. That’s why it is absolutely critical that the Senate end the delay and finally confirm President Biden’s FCC nominee Gigi Sohn, in addition to supporting the Net Neutrality and Broadband Justice Act.7,8
Countless groups and individuals across the country have been anxiously awaiting the moment to restore net neutrality. Right now, we have a clear shot to set up the FCC to finally make it happen. Will you sign the petition urging the House and Senate to support this bill NOW?