Pallone Stresses Importance of Protecting Net Neutrality as FCC Comment Period Closes

Long Branch, NJ-  Today at the Long Branch Free Public Library, Congressman Frank Pallone, Jr. (NJ-06) stressed the need to protect net neutrality from the Trump administration’s attempts to roll back the protections that are the foundations of the free and open internet. Net neutrality protections guarantee that consumers get equal access to everything on the web without interference from broadband providers.  Earlier this year, the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) proposed to gut net neutrality protections.    

“At its most basic level, net neutrality means that we, the people, can decide for ourselves what we do online,” said Pallone. “We decide which videos we watch, which sites we read, and which services we use. Nobody gets to influence that choice: Not the government, and not the companies that run the networks. That’s how the internet in the US has always operated, and that’s how it should be.

“If Washington Republicans have their way, the consequences will be severe. Their plan will have a chilling influence on our democracy, cut away at our connections with each other, and limit economic opportunities for the future.”