Sen. Rand Paul (R-Ky.) on Wednesday added new fuel to the congressional assault on the FCC‘s net neutrality rules, introducing a resolution that would strike down the rules using Congress‘ power to disapprove of any federal regulation.
“This regulation by the FCC is a textbook example of Washington’s desire to regulate anything and everything and will do nothing more than wrap the Internet in red tape,” Paul said in a statement.
Paul’s one-page joint resolution says simply that “Congress disapproves the rule submitted by the Federal Communications Commission relating to regulating broadband Internet access … and such rule shall have no force or effect.”
The Congressional Review Act allows Congress to nullify any rule published by a federal agency by passing a joint resolution within 60 days of the rule’s publication in the Federal Register. The FCC published its open Internet rules on April 13.
Net neutrality has proven to be a political lightning rod unlike any other tech policy issue in recent years. Cable and wireless providers have sued the FCC to get a federal court to toss out the rules, and congressional Republicans have introduced all manner of bills aimed at the same goal. The battle over these rules is likely to last for years.
The Internet, Paul claimed in announcing his resolution, had “successfully flourished without the heavy hand of government interference.”
“I do not want to see the government regulating the Internet,” he said.
Photo via Backbone Campaign/Flickr (CC BY 2.0)
