H.R. 1644 Hurts Rural Broadband

While Republicans support free and open Internet and have offered three bills to start a conversation on the best approach to codifying protections for consumers, H.R. 1644—The Save the Internet Act—is more about scoring political points than protecting consumers from ISP blocking and throttling. H.R. 1644 would restore the heavy-handed, government control of the Internet that depressed investment in broadband networks for two years. There is no need for the federal government to seize control over the Internet with excessive regulations—this could slow down economic growth and stifle innovation. All over the country in districts like ours, many Americans still lack access to broadband. There is no doubt that a legislative solution to net neutrality should protect consumers from the anticompetitive conduct wherever they are online—including from ISPs—but we cannot leave rural America further behind in the process.