Free Press to FCC Chairman Ajit Pai: Title II Network Neutrality Is Working

Here’s what Federal Communications Commission Chairman Ajit Pai refuses to admit: by every conceivable measure Title II network neutrality is working.

There’s no real partisan divide or controversy about the need for net neutrality outside of Washington’s political circles and lobbying shops. In our reply to the FCC, we once again explained the history and importance of the net neutrality protections that fostered innovation and investment throughout the last twenty years — both before and after they were put on the right legal footing in 2015. We took down the ludicrous claims of companies like AT&T that they do not provide telecommunications services to the public. And we showed how at every turn these companies have telegraphed their intentions to thwart the Net Neutrality rules and offer worse service if the rules are overturned. The millions of comments in this proceeding is what it looks like when real people understand the stakes of policy decisions in Washington and participate in our democracy. In his crusade to roll back the rules Chairman Pai has chosen to ignore all available evidence about broadband deployment and ISP spending, along with millions of comments from the public. He hasn’t been able to state a single logical reason why the existing Title II Net Neutrality rules should be overturned. The Commission should wake up and listen, instead of refusing to address irregularities in the public commenting process while resorting to gimmicks to delegitimize and squelch the voices of concerned people.