John Yarmuth: “I thank the gentlewoman for yielding. Mr. Chairman, as I said on Wednesday during debate on the rule, the bill before us…”

“I thank the gentlewoman for yielding. Mr. Chairman, as I said on Wednesday during debate on the rule, the bill before us today is a vague solution in search of a nonexistent problem. While we all share concerns about the idea of broadband Internet rate regulation, Chairman Wheeler has made it absolutely clear that the FCC will not seek to regulate those rates. But since this bill is before the House anyway, I thought I would offer an amendment that would address an actual problem that can be fixed by the FCC. Section 317 of the Communications Act of 1934 requires broadcasters to disclose the true identity of political advertising sponsors. The FCC currently relies on an outdated 1979 staff interpretation of the law that does not account for the dramatic changes that have taken place in our campaign system over the last 6 years, including the Citizens United and McCutcheon decisions. The rule makes sense. The American people ought to know who is actually trying to influence their votes. Unfortunately, sponsors in today's world don't indicate who is actually paying for the ad. No. We get sponsors like Americans for Kittens and Puppies. That is not very helpful in disclosing to the American people who is trying to influence them.…”