ISP Group Threatens Suit if FCC Thwarts Protectionist State Laws Insisting they're interested in protecting states rights, the rather official-sounding "National Conference of State Legislatures" this week sent a letter (pdf) to the FCC, saying it intends to file a lawsuit if the agency acts to pre-empt state bans on community broadband builds. FCC boss Tom Wheeler has lately proclaimed several times he intends to take actions against such bans, which are usually written and lobbied for by incumbent ISPs, eager to thwart the faster, cheaper services such networks can provide. These bills are the very worst sort of protectionist legislation -- legislation that strips away the right from citizens to make infrastructure and investment decisions for themselves. While it remains wholly unclear how Wheeler would do it (or if he's just paying empty lip service to the idea), eliminating them would give the power back to the states -- something that should technically appeal to those with Conservative values. Still, politicians flush with cash from the likes of AT&T and Comcast (like Martha Blackburn) have rushed to the defense of these bills, pretending to be breathlessly protecting state rights. Blackburn recently successfully passed a bill in the House that would strip FCC funding if they take any action against these state measures. As for the NCSL, they too insist the group is solely interested in states rights. "As you consider your course of action on this matter, we encourage you to heed the principles of federalism and caution you of the numerous decisions by the United States Supreme Court with regard to the relationship between the state and its political subdivisions," states the group. "Such an attempt disregards the countless hours of deliberation and votes cast by locally elected lawmakers across the country and supplants it with the impulses of a fivemember appointed body in Washington, DC." Granted if you look at the NCSL's Granted if you look at the NCSL's sponsor list , you'll notice some very familiar names including AT&T, Comcast and Time Warner Cable -- all of which were responsible for writing the very protectionist laws the NCSL is trying to protect on behalf of "states rights."







News Jump California Defends Its Net Neutrality Law; AT&T's Traffic Up 20% Despite Data Traffic Actually Being Down; + more news Are The Comcast-Charter X1 Talks Dead In The Water?; AT&T May Offer Phone Plans With Ads For Discounts; + more news Europe's Top Court: Net Neutrality Rules Bar Zero Rating; ViacomCBS To Rebrand CBS All Access As Paramount+; + more news Verizon To Buy Reseller TracFone For $7B; 5G Not The Competitive Threat To Cable Many Thought It Would Be; + more news MS.Wants Records From AT&T On $300M Project; Google Fiber Outages In Austin, Houston, Other Texan Cities; + more news States With The Biggest Decreases In Speed; AT&T Hopes You'll Forget Its Fight Against Accurate Maps; + more news AT&T's CEO Has A Familiar $olution To US Broadband Woes; EarthLink Files Suit Against Charter; + more news 5G Doesn't Live Up To Hype, AT&T's 5G Slower Than Its 4G; Cord-Cutting Now In 37% of Broadband Households; + more news FCC Cited False Broadband Data Despite Warnings; ZTE, Huawei Replacement Cost Is $1.87B, But Only $1B Allocated; + more Cogeco Rejects Altice USA's Atlantic Broadband Bid; AT&T Is Astroturfing The FCC In Support Of Trump Attack; + more news ---------------------- this week last week most discussed

Most recommended from 28 comments

gaforces (banned)

United We Stand, Divided We Fall

join:2002-04-07

Santa Cruz, CA 4 recommendations gaforces (banned) Member Reclassify! They are begging for common carrier status by causing undue influence in political matters to directly increase profits.

davidc502

join:2002-03-06

Mount Juliet, TN 1 edit 2 recommendations davidc502 Member It's about interests and not values People like Marsha Blackburn are willing to put aside so called 'Conservative Values' for corporation's interests. She would rather see tens of thousands of people with no service or bad service, than take one dollar away from 'job creating Corporations'.



What a joke, and it's on the citizens of Tennessee!



Elections are rolling around, and this would be perfect ammunition for an opponent running against Marsha.