Net Neutrality Rules Move Past First Hurdle In California
Summary
A proposal that would restore net neutrality in California advanced in the state Senate on Tuesday with changes that scaled back some of its provisions.
Under the version of the legislation that passed in committee, the state’s utilities commission would not monitor or enforce net neutrality rules, a power that would instead fall to the state’s attorney general. Companies also would not have to adhere to net neutrality rules as part of cable franchise agreements or as a condition for obtaining state contracts to install broadband across the state.
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Stanford Law School professor Barbara van Schewick countered that stance, saying internet providers could simply pay for the infrastructure themselves. Meanwhile, a lack of competition means residents in parts of the state have access to only one internet provider, a situation she says the lack of net neutrality regulations will exacerbate.
“The problem is not that we need to get them more money that they don’t already have,” she said. “The problem is that we don’t have competition.”
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