Issue Position: Telecommunications & Techonology - Network Neutrality

Issue Position

No element of telecommunications reform has drawn greater public awareness and concern than the principle of network neutrality, which ensures that the Internet remains open to all and guarantees everyone equal access. Discoveries of telecommunication providers blocking Internet traffic based on content and the software application used have spurred both FCC and Congressional action. The FCC adopted an order requiring Comcast to end discriminatory network management practices, and Congress is considering several legislative proposals, one of which will codify the tenets of network neutrality for broadband:

(1) To maintain the freedom to use broadband telecommunications networks for lawful purposes without unreasonable interference from or discrimination by network operators;

(2) To ensure that the Internet remains a vital force in the United States economy;

(3) To preserve and promote the open and interconnected nature of broadband networks that enable consumers to reach, and service providers to offer, lawful content, applications, and services of their choosing, using their selection of devices, as long as such devices do not harm the network;

(4) To safeguard the open marketplace of ideas on the Internet by adopting and enforcing baseline protections to guard against unreasonable discriminatory favoritism for, or degradation of, content by network operators based upon its source, ownership, or destination on the Internet.

Network neutrality legislation will have significant implications on the future of the Internet, and I take my decision to support any specific proposals very seriously. Any new law must guarantee -- but also strike a balance between -- consumers' freedom of content (within existing free speech laws), application, and fees for speed; Internet companies and websites' equal access to customers and service; and Internet providers' ability to increase bandwidth and stabilize service.

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