Trump to sign broadband privacy repeal

by Ali Breland - 03/30/17 1:50 PM ET

President Trump will sign a bill repealing the Federal Communications Commission’s (FCC) broadband privacy rules, the White House said Thursday.

The White House had previously issued its support for the bill, noting that “if S.J.Res. 34 were presented to the President, his advisors would recommend that he sign the bill into law.”

A White House official confirmed to The Hill that Trump planned to sign the bill. It was first reported by Reuters.

White House press secretary Sean Spicer during Wednesday’s briefing did not say whether Trump would sign the bill.

The House on Tuesday passed the legislation, which would get rid of the consumer data protections approved by the FCC under Obama.

{mosads}The Senate passed the resolution last week, largely along party lines. No Democrats voted in favor of the bill in either chamber.

The FCC rules would have prevented internet service providers from selling their subscribers’ “sensitive” information like app usage data and web browsing history to third parties.

The repeal is seen as a win for telecommunications companies, who argued that the regulations were onerous, especially in light of the fact that internet companies like Google, Twitter and others have free rein to collect similar types of data.

Supporters of the rules like Sen. Edward Markey (D-Mass.) and advocacy groups like the ACLU and FreePress have contended that the comparison isn’t accurate. They argue that consumers have more choices in what internet applications they use compared to the limited amount of broadband providers they can choose service from.

Tags Edward Markey