Lawmakers are about to re-open telecommunications law, and they are sure to unearth nothing less than a can of worms. The chairmen of the House and Senate commerce committees and subcommittees announced this week that they are going to hold a series of meetings starting in June to gather proposals for bringing the Communications Act up-to-date. The law was last updated in 1996 with the enactment of the Telecommunications Act, which took more than a decade to pass and enjoys mixed reviews these days.

The timing of this legislative effort dovetails with the Federal Communications Commission's broadband initiatives, which include a plan to prevent ISPs from blocking or slowing certain classes of content. This attempt at network neutrality by the commission is highly contentious, having already elicited thinly veiled threats to sue from heavy hitting opponents.

In order to pursue its broadband plan, the FCC is attempting to move broadband services into the same regulatory category as telephone services, as we reported earlier this month. At the same time, the commission plans to refrain from applying most of the telephone regulations to broadband. That promise of restraint, however, is not enough to calm the fears of the large ISPs.

On Capitol Hill, the issue of net neutrality is largely, but not entirely, partisan. We reported back in April that Sen. John Rockefeller, D-W.V., chairman of the Senate commerce committee, and Rep. Henry Waxman, D-Calif., chairman of the House commerce committee, indicated they are willing craft a new law, if necessary, to establish non-discrimination rules for the Internet. However, Rep. Gene Green, D-Texas, and 72 other House Democrats sent a letter to the FCC this week asking the agency to drop its broadband reclassification plan. The letter reflects many of the anti-net neutrality arguments made by large ISPs, suggesting that regulation will stifle innovation and cost jobs.

Republican lawmakers have not minced words in warning the commission not to try to reclassify broadband on its own. During a hearing in April, Sen. Kay Bailey Hutchison, R-Texas, said the FCC's legitimacy could be compromised if it pursues its "aggressive regulatory posture."  

There will be no shortage of proposals coming to the committees in June.

For more:
- see Senate commerce committee press release
- see Rep. Gene Green's letter to FCC

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