Austin News

WASHINGTON, D.C. – U.S. Senate Commerce Committee Ranking Member Ted Cruz (R-Texas) criticized the Biden Federal Communications Commission (FCC) for its intention to reinstate the Obama-era net neutrality rules, treating the Internet as a public utility controlled by the federal government. Cruz argued that America's faster and more competitively-priced internet service during the pandemic showcased the success of the current system, while heavily-regulated European networks struggled to keep up.

Referring to the FCC Democrats' previous predictions of doom and gloom after the repeal of the Obama-era rules in 2017, Cruz stated, "FCC Democrats are laughably plowing ahead even though their histrionic predictions turned out to be completely bogus. Instead of providing legitimate reasons for another policy reversal, it’s clear that FCC Democrats simply want control. They desperately want to micromanage providers’ pricing and terms of service, and collect billions in new USF taxes at the expense of investment, economic growth, and consumer choice."

Cruz further emphasized that reinstating the failed net neutrality policy would be a waste of time and resources. He argued that the FCC lacks authority to regulate the Internet as a public utility and warned that any attempt to do so would be struck down by the courts. Cruz also criticized the impact of such regulations on private sector investment, suggesting that the FCC should focus on promoting broadband growth by eliminating barriers to deployment and addressing waste in broadband subsidy programs.

In his recent 'Red Light' report, Cruz highlighted the need for the FCC to concentrate its efforts on cleaning up the broadband subsidy programs and facilitating broadband growth. The report can be accessed here.

For more information, please visit:

• U.S. Senate Commerce Committee
• Federal Communications Commission