An Historic Vote for Net Neutrality in the Senate

For well over a decade, the debate on how best to ensure protections for broadband customers has bounced around Washington, DC. Although Congressional Members have often shared their opinions on network neutrality, few have ever gotten the chance to cast a vote on the issue. That changed this week when the Senate voted 52-47 to adopt Senate Joint Resolution 52. S.J. Res 52, introduced by Sen. Ed Markey (D-MA), nullifies the rule submitted by the Federal Communications Commission entitled "Restoring Internet Freedom." Adopted by the FCC is December 2017, the rule, published on February 22, 2018, is set to take affect on June 11. But the Restoring Internet Freedom Order is better known as a repeal of the FCC's Protecting and Promoting the Open Internet Order which banned three practices that harm the Open Internet: blocking, throttling, and paid prioritization. Passage of S.J. Res 52 would reinstate these rules.