Do Your FCC Comments Matter?

The Day of Action on network neutrality generated some 2 million comments to the Federal Communications Commission, according to Fight for the Future Campaign Director Evan Greer, who added that figure doesn’t include comments submitted via the Internet Association’s page, which was promoted by a host of tech companies. The comments are still being entered into the FCC’s docket, which at last check had more than 7 million filings. FCC Chairman Ajit Pai said the sheer number of comments won't dictate the outcome of the proceeding. “The raw number is not as important as the substantive comments that are in the record,” said Chairman Pai. “We want to weigh all comments and make sure that we take a full view of the record and again make the appropriate judgment based on those facts and the law as it applies.” But FCC Commissioner Mignon Clyburn cautioned against discounting comments simply because they aren’t written like legal briefs. “To ignore the voices of individuals who take the time in their own way to express their feelings about something that is so critical as an open internet … that’s short-sighted,” Commissioner Clyburn said. “There is a reason why people have a low opinion of government and government employees, because they think they ignore what they say.”