Slashdot Mirror


California Senate Defies FCC, Approves Net Neutrality Law (arstechnica.com)

The California State Senate yesterday approved a bill to impose net neutrality restrictions on Internet service providers, challenging the Federal Communications Commission attempt to preempt such rules. From a report: The FCC's repeal of its own net neutrality rules included a provision to preempt state and municipal governments from enforcing similar rules at the local level. But the governors of Montana and New York have signed executive orders to enforce net neutrality and several states are considering net neutrality legislation.

The FCC is already being sued by t21 states and the District of Columbia, which are trying to reverse the net neutrality repeal and the preemption of state laws. Attempts to enforce net neutrality rules at the state or local level could end up being challenged in separate lawsuits.

12 of 292 comments (clear)

  1. Re:States are out of control by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 1, Insightful

    It's always fun to see states rights used for something other than slavery and bigotry. Watch and the PsudoPublicans rage against this.

  2. So much for Republicans supporting states rights by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 5, Insightful

    When Republicans talk about "States rights", they really mean the right of states to pass laws that discriminate against people. They do not mean the right for states to establish their own drug laws nor for states to adopt laws like net neutrality.

    See, Republicans only complain about the big bad federal government when they pass laws they don't like. In other words, Republicans want to be bigots, and want to pass laws to support their bigotry, and cry "states rights" only to support their hateful agenda.

  3. Re:Defied? Wasn't this the point? by Sydin · · Score: 5, Insightful

    The FCC's rollback of Net Neutrality rules was ostensibly predicated on the premise that the FCC "doesn't have the authority" to enforce Net Neutrality. If that's the stance the FCC wants to take that's fine, but they then can't turn around and say they do have the authority to preempt states from adopting their own Net Neutrality measures. You can't have it both ways. Things would be different if Congress had passed a preemption, but as it stands I think the FCC would have a very hard time winning this fight in court given their contradictory statements on their ability to adjudicate how ISP's handle delivery of data.

  4. Re:States are out of control by bobbied · · Score: 3, Insightful

    True, and you can now CLAIM to be using legit stuff because there's no way to know either way.

    --
    "File to fit, pound to insert, paint to match" - Aircraft Maintenance 101
  5. Re:Defied? Wasn't this the point? by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 4, Insightful

    Montana's plan doesn't regulate ISPs and doesn't enforce Net Neutrality rules. Montana just updated their requirements to bid for state contracts to require that any ISP that wants a state contract MUST fully support net neutrality. The FCC can't tell the state not to change requirements for state contracts. They aren't telling ISPs that they can't violate net neutrality, just saying if you want the lucrative contract, you gotta follow it. If no ISPs are willing to do it, then a start up will and they'll get the lucrative state contract and grow and become a local threat. Suddenly it is in the ISPs best interests to follow net neutrality in Montana. And now New York has followed suit. If California is doing the same thing then ISPs are going to be feeling imense financial pressure very soon to just do net neutrality.

    They won the battle at the federal level, but winning that battle unleased full blown war with the states and that is a war they can't win because they depend on states toeing the line. If states start repealing bans on municipal ISPs then it's truly over.

  6. Re:So much for Republicans supporting states right by farble1670 · · Score: 5, Insightful

    Of course, nobody cares about power grabs when it is a grab for power one likes, like net neutrality, but hate it when it is for what one doesn't like, like net neutrality.

    The Rest Of Us make up our minds based on the issue at hand not a party affiliation.

    You ought to try it, comrade.

  7. Re: Defied? Wasn't this the point? by sjames · · Score: 1, Insightful

    Look, we get that you're horrified that anyone in the Trump administration has made a total ass of himself, but denying facts and crying about it won't help.

  8. Re:California: needles, hobo piss and bankruptcy by PopeRatzo · · Score: 3, Insightful

    * A massive Hepatitis outbreak in San Diego

    That's the shit we tell rust-belt people so they don't come here.

    The beach I'm going to today, I think maybe in Cayucos (there are ten beaches within ten miles of me) is perfectly clean. I mean, I've lived in California since September, and I still haven't seen litter anywhere.

    Also, California now has a $6.1 billion SURPLUS. If you believe that's because of bad calculations, you might want to tell the Wall Street Journal how to use a "calculator's basic functions", because clearly you're the only one who knows how they work.

    https://www.wsj.com/articles/j...

    --
    You are welcome on my lawn.
  9. Re:That's how California rolls by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 3, Insightful

    You do know that California is one of the largest food growers in the country, right? No of course you didn't. That would require intelligence and you are sorely lacking in any. Let's see how long those red states last without California subsidizing their tick like status.

  10. Re: Defied? Wasn't this the point? by rahvin112 · · Score: 4, Insightful

    Only problem is the FCC can't preempt state laws without a title II classification.

    They've already lost on this several times in court but every successive republican admin tries the same bloody thing to eliminate all regulations by unclassifying internet service but also preempt state rules and every time the court strikes down the attempt to regulate it (preempting state laws is a regulation) when it's unclassified.

    Either it's regulated under Title II and the FCC can set whatever rules they want, or it's not and they can't set ANY rules. The court told the FCC this directly when they lost the initial unregulated NN regulations suit during the Obama years (it was before they reclassified as type II to give them the authority to do so just like the court verdict said). They've only got two choices, they don't get to claim it's an unregulated service and then bar state level action.

    Ajit is just doing his duty as a good Telecom lawyer by trying to have his cake and eat it too by doing what the law doesn't allow him to do. He can't block state regulations on unclassified services. There's at least 3 court rulings on various attempts to get around this Title II problem and the last case was explicit, you can't regulate it unless it's a Title II service, you declare it's an unregulated data service and you can't then place restrictions on either the providers or the states. The FCC's only authority to regulate telecom is under Title II.

  11. There's a list, right there in the Constitution by raymorris · · Score: 3, Insightful

    The Constitution lists which things the federal government can do. It then says that all other powers are reserved to the states and the people. It actually says that last part THREE TIMES, just to be certain nobody can miss it.

    It then says that on these listed subjects that the federal government is allowed to legislate, federal law is the supreme law of the land, anything in state law notwithstanding:

    --
    This Constitution, and the Laws of the United States which shall be made in Pursuance thereof; and all Treaties made, or which shall be made, under the Authority of the United States, shall be the supreme Law of the Land; and the Judges in every State shall be bound thereby, any Thing in the Constitution or Laws of any State to the Contrary notwithstanding.
    --

    Either regulating nationwide ISPs regarding NN is NOT an enumerated power, in which case the FCC has no authority at all and can't do anything, or the feds have the power and the states do not. The Constitution does not allow for dueling laws, with some states having valid laws that contradict federal law.

    It is claimed that the federal government has the power under the Interstate Commerce Clause:

    --
    To regulate Commerce with foreign Nations, and among the several States, and with the Indian Tribes;
    --

    The federal rules apply companies *selling interstate* ISP services, so it sounds a lot like "commerce ... among the several states". The wording of thay clause *is* broad, but obviously it's intended to cover a limited number of things, so perhaps whenever something is questionable it should be interpreted fairly strictly.

    Moving along, the very first sentence of Article 1 says that all law-making authority is vested in Congress, who cannot delegate it to any other branch of government. Later it says the job of the Executive branch is to "take care that the laws be faithfully executed". So executive branch entities such as the FCC must enforce the laws that Congress passes.

    The question therefore is if Congress did in fact pass such a law and direct the FCC to enforce it. It is claimed that Congress did so with the Communications Act of 1934. Just by the title of the act alone, we can see it's going to be questionable whether, in 1934, Congress could have made any kind of law about the internet. In fact Congress made a law about the phone company (the ONE interstate phone company).

    It seems likely that the feds CAN regulate ISPs in this way, subject to first amendment and other rights, and then states could not trample on federal law. It also seems rather likely that Congress has not yet passed a bill requiring ISPs to implement Network Neutrality ideas, and without such a law the FCC has nothing to enforce.

  12. Re:The left rediscovers decentralization? by drinkypoo · · Score: 4, Insightful

    No, the myth is that uttering the phrase "state's rights" make you racist. it doesn't.

    It doesn't, but you do have to be aware of the context in which it was originally uttered loudly. And that context was not just preserving slavery, but also asking other states to respect it and send runaways back home. If you don't take that into account when you post about states' rights, you're going to be taken for a racist. I haven't checked up on your posting history, so I don't know that's what's happened, but it's not unlikely.

    --
    "You're right," Fisheye says. "I should have set it on 'whip' or 'chop.'"