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New York Attorney General Announces Lawsuit Against Net Neutrality Repeal

Pat Bradley/WAMC

With the Federal Communications Commission’s vote today to roll back Net Neutrality restrictions enacted in 2015 on Internet Service Providers, New York Attorney General Eric Schneiderman announced that he will lead a multi-state lawsuit against the repeal.

In a video, Schneiderman, a Democrat, called the FCC reversal “an early Christmas present” to Big Telecom and said the rule change is a threat to the free exchange of ideas on the Internet.  

“Today’s new rule would enable ISPs to charge consumers more to access sites like Facebook and Twitter and give them the leverage to degrade high quality of video streaming until and unless somebody pays them more money. Even worse, today’s vote would enable ISPs to favor certain viewpoints over others.”

Schneiderman’s office said it will also investigate two million allegedly fraudulent comments submitted to the FCC in favor of the rollback.

Republican Congresswoman Elise Stefanik of New York's 21st District also responded to the FCC's vote Thursday.

In an emailed statement, Stefanik said she would begin working toward "preserving an open, more accessible Internet."

She wrote in part:

“Today’s vote means that it is now Congress’ responsibility to pass legislation that codifies in law the principles of net neutrality to preserve an open internet and ensure that companies can invest in a robust broadband infrastructure. Families in our district have very few choices in internet service providers, which is why it is critical for Congress to now pass legislation to protect the North Country’s access to online information."

Lucas Willard is a reporter and host at WAMC Northeast Public Radio, which he joined in 2011.
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