On the recordDecember 13, 2017
I rise to join with the Senator from Vermont in opposition to the FCC's planned vote to end net neutrality protections. Tomorrow, as he noted, the FCC will hold a vote on Chairman Pai's plan to eliminate net neutrality. These rules have kept the internet free and open, and in a day where a lot of things aren't working, this was something that was actually working. People were able to access the internet, people in my State who maybe didn't have a lot of resources. Kids were able to access the internet to do their homework. It was working. If the FCC votes to abandon net neutrality, it will put internet service providers, not consumers, in charge of determining the future of the internet. Net neutrality holds internet service providers--big mega-internet service providers--accountable for providing the internet access consumers expect while protecting innovation and competition. It is the bedrock of a fast, free, and open internet. Net neutrality has allowed the internet to become one of the great American success stories, transforming not only how we communicate with our friends and our family but the way we do business, how consumers buy goods, and how we educate our kids. These protections have worked. We have rural kids who couldn't access classes before who are able to get these classes on the internet. We have small businesses that are able to advertise their services in a way that no one would have known that they existed.…
