White House offers support for rolling back net neutrality

The White House on Tuesday offered support for the Federal Communications Commission’s (FCC) proposal to roll back the Obama-era net neutrality internet rules.

“We support the FCC chair’s efforts to review and consider rolling back these rules and believe that the best way to get fair rules for everyone is for Congress to take action and create regulatory and economic certainty,” deputy press secretary Sarah Huckabee Sanders said.

Her comments come a day after the agency closed its comment period on Republican Chairman Ajit Pai’s “Restoring Internet Order” plan to undo the rules, which prevent broadband providers from blocking or slowing content.

Pai would target a Title II provision in the 2015 rules that gave the FCC the authority to regulate broadband providers by reclassifying them as common carriers.

Broadband industry officials and Republicans say that move was heavy-handed and subjected the industry to excessive regulations.

“The previous administration went about this the wrong way by imposing rules on [internet service providers] ISPs through the FCC’s Title II rulemaking power,” said Sanders said Tuesday.

On Monday, White House press secretary Sean Spicer was also asked about the administration’s position on rolling back net neutrality.

He said the FCC was an “independent agency” and that he would get back to the press.

Net neutrality supporters have been fighting to save the rules, but face an uphill climb. Last week, they held a “Day of Action” to draw the public’s attention to net neutrality.