Civic Register
| 5.16.18

The Latest: Senate Votes to Reinstate Net Neutrality

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Senate Democrats and Sen. Susan Collins (R-ME) are set to force a vote today to undo the Trump administration’s rollback of Obama era net neutrality rules.

They’re using an obscure tool known as the Congressional Review Act, which allows Congress to reject regulations that were finalized within the last 60 legislative days with simple majorities of each chamber and the president’s signature. We’ll keep this post updated with developments from the Senate floor. (All times Eastern.)

What's Next for Net Neutrality in Congress?: With the Senate's passage of the net neutrality CRA, the bill now awaits action from the House ― which may prove hard to come by. Republican leaders in the House opposed the Obama era rules and are unlikely to schedule a vote that would undo one of the Trump administration's key regulatory actions.

House lawmakers are likely to attempt to overrule leadership and force a vote through a discharge petition, which would force a vote on passage if 218 members sign onto the petition. Given that there are currently 193 Democrats in the House, at least 25 GOP members would need to support the discharge effort.

If the discharge petition effort is successful, the resolution would likely face a veto by President Donald Trump unless a bipartisan net neutrality framework has been agreed to by Congress.

Senate Passes Net Neutrality CRA: On a 52-47 vote, the Senate passed the net neutrality CRA introduced by Sen. Ed Markey (D-MA). All of the chamber's Democrats voted in favor. They were joined by three Republicans: Sens. Susan Collins (ME), Lisa Murkowski (AK), and John Kennedy (LA).

Passage Vote Soon: At around 3pm the Senate is expected to proceed to a vote on the passage of the net neutrality CRA. A simple majority is all that's needed to send the bill, which looks to reinstate Obama era net neutrality rules, to the House.

Thune Tries to Bring Up Net Neutrality Replacement: Sen. John Thune (R-SD) asked for unanimous consent to bring up a bill he introduced today that, similar to Sen. Kennedy's bill described below, would codify net neutrality prohibitions on blocking or throttling content while allowing for paid prioritization. He also asked that up to 10 amendments be considered to his bill.

Sen. Ed Markey (D-MA), sponsor of the net neutrality CRA that's currently being considered, raised an objection and debate on his bill resumed.

Debate Officially Begins: On a 52-47 vote the Senate adopted the motion to proceed, setting up several hours of debate before a vote on passage of the net neutrality CRA. All Senate Democrats voted in favor, and they were joined by Republican Senators Susan Collins (ME), John Kennedy (LA), and Lisa Murkowski (AK).

It's worth noting that Sen. Kennedy has authored a bill known as the Open Internet Preservation Act that aims to strike a balance between the Trump administration's new rules and the Obama era net neutrality protections. It'd prohibit ISPs from blocking legal content or services and from impairing or "throttling" internet traffic on the basis of content while allowing them to offer paid prioritization (so long as it doesn't amount to blocking or throttling). But whether his bill will eventually come up for a vote is a question for another day.

Procedural Vote Soon: At noon, the Senate will vote on what’s known as a “motion to proceed” to a matter (like a bill or nomination) on the floor, in this case the net neutrality CRA. It only requires a simple majority to be successful, and would kickoff what will be several hours of lively debate on net neutrality before a vote on the bill’s passage.

Senate Gavels In: The Senate has convened and is in a period of morning business, with senators coming to the floor individually to speak about whatever they want. Expect most of these speeches to focus on the upcoming net neutrality vote.

Tell your senators whether they should support or oppose the rollback of net neutrality rules using the Take Action button and share your thoughts below!

— Eric Revell

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(Photo Credit: dkfielding / iStock)