Sheila Jackson Lee: “With all good intentions of the underlying bill, the Regulatory Integrity Act of 2017, which has a very distinguished…”

“With all good intentions of the underlying bill, the Regulatory Integrity Act of 2017, which has a very distinguished name, I am really concerned, and my colleague should be concerned, of the chilling effect of this particular legislation. Let me tell you what the problem is. My good friend from Texas Mr. Farenthold, Congresswoman Jackson Lee, and Professor Raskin will not be bending over the shoulder of some hardworking public servant for the Federal Government trying to interpret what this new law means. Can I speak? Can I send information out? What a chilling effect. What a First Amendment violation this legislation might entail. Take, for example, Chairman Pai of the FCC. He decided to publish the full text of proposals and regulations that the public would otherwise never see until after they had been finalized and approved. Suppose he was then charged with a violation of this bill? Chilling effect, undermining the public's ability to even understand what a very important agency such as the FCC is doing. My amendment simply states that nothing in this bill shall be interpreted to prohibit any communication that is protected under the First Amendment to the United States Constitution. For those of us who love the Constitution, that is the First Amendment, and it is a simple, simple statement.…”