Waters Commends FCC’s Decision to Reclassify Broadband

Waters Commends FCC's Decision to Reclassify Broadband

WASHINGTON, D.C. – Following a decision by the Federal Communications Commission to reclassify broadband under Title II of the Telecommunications Act, Congresswoman Maxine Waters, Ranking Member of House Financial Services Committee, commended the FCC and Chairman Tom Wheeler for ensuring the Internet remains open and free.

Congresswoman Waters has long advocated for strong net neutrality rules. In 2010, Congresswoman Waters wrote then FCC Chairman Julius Genachowski, applauding the FCC's decision to draft Open Internet rules but later voiced concern that FCC's initial net neutrality rules didn't go far enough to afford protections to populations that disproportionally access the internet on mobile devices. When Comcast Corporation sought to merge with NBC Universal, in numerous procedural filings with the FCC and letters to the Department of Justice (DOJ), she urged both agencies to condition the merger's approval on substantive public interest commitments that would both promote media diversity and prohibit a merged Comcast-NBC from engaging in anticompetitive conduct – including any blocking or otherwise diminishing consumer access to online and cable content owned by Comcast-NBC's competitors. In recent months, Rep. Waters sharpened her focused on the importance of expanding Open Internet rules to cover mobile internet access. Earlier this month, she led a Congressional Letter to FCC Chairman Wheeler, urging the reclassification of mobile broadband, which is the primary means of internet access for 43% of African Americans and 60% of Latinos.

Statement as follows:
 

"I commend Chairman Wheeler and the FCC on yesterday's decision to reclassify broadband under Title II of the Telecommunications Act. Reclassification will provide the Commission with unequivocal legal authority to enforce Open Internet rules for both mobile and wireline. The new rules allow all consumers unfettered access to every lawful website on the Internet without fear of slower speeds, blocking, or discrimination. The rules are also good for businesses, as it makes a way for new and young companies to thrive online without being squeezed out through expensive prohibitive fees.

"By broadening the rules' application to mobile broadband, the FCC will best protect communities of color who disproportionately rely on mobile broadband for internet access. For many, mobile devices are the primary method to procuring government services or applying for jobs. Without commonsense rules for mobile and wireline broadband, many Americans would have been relegated to a second-class online experience. The Internet has given a voice to the voiceless and allowed marginalized communities to organize around the issues they care about. By reclassifying broadband, the FCC can ensure that the Internet remains a powerful tool for all, regardless of how they get online."

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