Blackburn Bill to Block FCC's Net Neutrality Rules Receives Support in the Senate

Statement

Congressman Marsha Blackburn (R-TN) has been leading the fight in Congress against the Obama Administration's Net Neutrality regulations since they were first proposed in 2010 by Former Federal Communications Commission (FCC) Chairman Julius Genachowski. Despite being struck down by a Federal Appeals Court in January of 2014, FCC Chairman Tom Wheeler pushed forward in an effort to implement President Obama's Net Neutrality rules.

In the 112th, 113th and 114th Congress, Blackburn introduced the Internet Freedom Act, legislation that would block the FCC's Net Neutrality rules by stating that they shall have no force or effect and prohibits the FCC from reissuing new Net Neutrality rules.

This week the Senate introduced a companion to Blackburn's bill, S. 2602. The bill was introduced by Senator Mike Lee (R-UT). Co-sponsors include Sens. Marco Rubio (R-FL), Ted Cruz (R-TX), Rand Paul (R-KY), Tom Cotton (R-AR), Thom Tillis (R-NC), John Cornyn (R-TX), and Benjamin Sasse (R-NE).

"We must stop the FCC's Net Neutrality rules, which are nothing more than a Trojan horse for government takeover of the Internet. These overreaching rules will stifle innovation, restrict freedoms, and lead to billions of dollars in new fees and taxes for American consumers. We thank Senator Lee for introducing the Senate version and look forward to working with him as we move this forward," Blackburn said.

"The economic burden of these regulations will fall squarely on the backs of the consumers the FCC purports to help. The threat of anticompetitive behavior should always be taken seriously. But it makes no sense for a five-person panel of presidential appointees to write a sweeping law aimed at solving a problem that might someday exist. There are more effective, more democratic, and less intrusive ways to address anticompetitive behavior, including existing antitrust and consumer-protection laws," Lee said.

Congressman Blackburn will be available for interviews on this topic tomorrow, February 27th. Please contact Kate McBrayer if you are interested in interviewing the Congressman on camera or by phone.

Source