WASHINGTON – Regulations governing how U.S. companies treat Internet traffic moved a step closer to taking effect after passing a White House review, a Federal Communications Commission spokesman said.
The open Internet, or net-neutrality, regulations that passed a divided FCC in December cleared the Office of Management and Budget on Sept. 9, FCC spokesman Neil Grace said in an email Monday. The next step is for the rules to be published in the Federal Register, which usually takes one to three weeks, and the rules would take effect 60 days after publication, Grace said.
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The regulations would bar Internet-service providers including Time Warner Cable Inc., Verizon Communications Inc. and AT&T Inc. from unfairly blocking or slowing Web content sent to homes and businesses. Backers said the rules are needed to prevent abuses, while service providers said the regulations aren’t necessary.
A court in April dismissed as premature a lawsuit by Verizon and MetroPCS Communications Inc. that sought to void the rules.
The Republican-led House in April voted to reverse the FCC’s rules, which passed with the agency’s three Democratic commissioners voting in favor and its two Republicans voting against. The Democrat-led Senate hasn’t taken up the House resolution.
