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California delays net neutrality law while federal lawsuit plays out
Last month, California's governor signed the state's net neutrality bill into law, legislation that restores the net neutrality protections the FCC repealed last year. However, the state was quickly hit with a lawsuit from both the Department of Justice and industry groups representing companies like AT&T, Charter and Verizon, which claimed the law ran afoul of the FCC's regulations. California's law was set to take effect at the start of next year, but the state has now agreed to delay its implementation and stay the litigation until a federal challenge to the FCC's decision is settled.
CA governor signs net neutrality bill into law, Justice Department sues
A net neutrality bill that its sponsor Scott Weiner calls "the strongest in the nation" (after being restored to its original form) is now state law in California after being signed by governor Jerry Brown. SB 822 is intended to restore the protections put in place by a (now-rescinded) 2015 FCC Order, as well as closing "loopholes" that its backers said could have allowed anti-competitive forms of zero-rating. FCC Chairman Ajit Pai captained the effort to repeal those rules, and has called the bill "illegal," setting the stage for a squabble between the state and federal government. And just as quickly as the bill has been signed, the New York Times reports that the Justice Department has filed a lawsuit against it. In a statement, the department claimed "Senate Bill 822, an Internet regulation bill signed into law earlier today by Governor Jerry Brown, unlawfully imposes burdens on the Federal Government's deregulatory approach to the Internet."
California's net neutrality bill is one signature away from taking effect
After SB 822 passed California's state Assembly yesterday, it just needed (re)approval from the Senate before going in front of the governor to be signed into law. The net neutrality bill that its sponsor Scott Weiner calls "the strongest in the nation" got the necessary votes this evening despite opposition from groups representing ISPs like Comcast, AT&T and Verizon. Stanford Center for Internet and Society director Barbara van Schewick said in a statement that "SB 822 sets the standard for other states to follow. SB 822 is the only state-level bill that truly restores all the 2015 net neutrality protections. That's what makes it so special. Most state-level bills have just copied the text of the FCC's 2015 net neutrality rules, leaving out critical protections. By contrast, SB 822 includes the important protections and clarifications in the full Order which explained the rules and closed known loopholes." According to Weiner, "when Donald Trump's FCC decided to take a wrecking ball to net neutrality protections, we knew that California had to step in to ensure our residents have access to a free and open internet." The EFF noted Verizon's recent throttling of internet to firefighters battling a blaze in Mendocino, saying that because the Open Internet order was repealed earlier this year, it could escape "meaningful" punishment for that.
