July 2017

As part of Federal Communications Commission Cgairman Ajit Pai's proposal to roll back Title II and review network neutrality regulations, the agency is proposing to use a "multiplier" to calculate the amount, if any, of lost investment from Title II, beyond the immediate investment to the total impact of that lost investment, say on construction workers not getting paid because of buildouts not being built out -- something like counting the number of other dominoes that fall rather than just counting the first one. The Free State Foundation, in comments to the FCC, submitted an assessment of such a cost-benefit analysis by senior fellow Theodore Bolema that suggested it would be reasonable to multiply lost investment assessments by between 1.25 and 1.75, which would mean Free State's own estimate of a $5.6 billion reduction in what would have been invested between 2015 and 2016 were Title II not in place would translate to more like between $7 billion and $9.8 billion. "If the current investment trend were to continue," said Free State president Randolph May in the FCC submission, "the negative economic impact resulting from the Open Internet Order regulatory regime will only become greater over time.”

[Commentary] If there's anything lawmakers should have learned from activists over the past few years it's this: Do not make the internet angry.

In March, congressional Republicans once again felt the wrath of the internet community when they reversed the Federal Communications Commission’s broadband privacy rules. The blowback from the vote was massive, prompting members of Congress to hide from angry constituents. Now President Donald Trump and FCC Chairman Ajit Pai are digging even deeper and looking to overturn the historic 2015 Net Neutrality win. If they think the internet is going to take that sitting down, they have another think coming. The internet community and allied companies come together to remind President Trump, Chairman Pai and Congress that millions of people in America have made their support for net neutrality known. They know that the repeal of net neutrality means the end of real privacy protections, means paying more for worse service — and enables companies like AT&T, Comcast and Verizon to decide how you use the internet.

[Sandra Fulton is the government relations manager for Free Press Action Fund]