Public Knowledge Applauds Subcommittee Approval of Save the Internet Act

Today, the House Energy and Commerce Committee, Subcommittee on Communications and Technology marked up and reported out Chairman Mike Doyle’s (D-PA) bill, “Save the Internet Act,” (H.R. 1644) to restore the Federal Communications Commission’s 2015 Open Internet Order that created the agency’s strong net neutrality rules. Public Knowledge supports passage of H.R. 1644 (and its Senate companion bill, S. 682), and commends Chairman Doyle and full Energy and Commerce Chairman Frank Pallone (D-NJ) for taking decisive action to restore strong net neutrality protections for consumers.

The following can be attributed to Phillip Berenbroick, Senior Policy Counsel at Public Knowledge:

“Today's vote by the Subcommittee to approve the Save the Internet Act is a critical step for Congress to restore strong net neutrality consumer protections. Members of the Subcommittee have carefully weighed the issues and listened to the more than 80 percent of Americans who consistently say they support restoring the protections the FCC adopted in the 2015 Open Internet Order.

“Since the FCC repealed its Open Internet Order in 2017, broadband providers have slowly and carefully moved to erode the concepts of net neutrality in their business practices and their advocacy. The Save the Internet Act would restore net neutrality protections nationwide. We urge members of the House to support this bill and encourage every American to demand that their Representatives vote to approve it immediately.

“Most importantly, the Subcommittee approved the bill without adding harmful amendments that would gut the FCC’s authority to protect consumers, promote competition, incentivize innovation, and help close the digital divide. Now, the full Energy and Commerce Committee should move quickly to markup the Save the Internet Act and report a clean bill out for consideration on the floor of the House of Representatives.”

For more information on why Americans need strong net neutrality protections, please view our recent blog post, “Broadband Providers Are Quietly Taking Advantage of an Internet Without Net Neutrality Protections.” You may also view our intervenors’ brief for more details on Public Knowledge’s work to overturn the FCC’s 2017 repeal of net neutrality protections in court.

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