A House panel has voted to repeal a set of regulations from the Federal Communications Commission that prevent cable and internet providers from blocking access to the web.
The Republican-dominated Commerce Subcommittee on Communications and Technology voted 15 to 8 on Wednesday to overturn the FCC's rules.
"There is no crisis warranting intervention," Energy and Commerce Chairman Fred Upton, R-Mich., said in his opening statement. "The internet is open and thriving precisely because we have refrained from regulating it."
An FCC spokesperson did not immediately respond to request for comment.
Ever since the FCC passed its new regulations, which impose fines on companies that bar high-bandwidth content such as streaming video or charge fees for premium service, it has faced criticism from congressional Republicans. They argue that the FCC does not govern the internet and that the House and Senate are net neutrality rules should emerge.
Having passed the subcommittee hearing, the resolution now moves to the full House Energy and Commerce Committee for a vote.
Indeed, the resolution of disapproval has a long way to go before it becomes law. It still needs to be embraced and approved in both the House and Senate. Even if it passes those hurdles, it could still be vetoed by President Barack Obama.
Public interest groups supportive of open internet policies slammed the subcommittee's actions.
“Today’s vote to overrule the FCC’s open internet protections is unfortunate, though hardly surprising. It is also an exercise in futility, as it will never be enacted into law," Andrew Jay Schwartzman, senior VP and policy director of Media Access Project, said in a statement.
More damaging to the FCC's regulations than Wednesday's vote may be a pair of court challenges from MetroPCS and Verizon. In them, the companies argue that the FCC rules should be overturned, citing a U.S. Court of Appeals decision last summer that said the commission — which can regulate broadcast TV and telephone landlines — has never been given authority to regulate the internet.
