Federal appeals court upholds California net neutrality law

A federal appeals court voted unanimously on Friday to uphold California’s reports The Verge. One year after the Federal Communications Commission that applied nationwide, the state passed its own set of laws. Those rules barred internet service providers from blocking, as well as throttling select websites and services. However, California could those laws due to two separate legal challenges.

The first came from the Department of Justice. Under former President Donald Trump, the agency sued the state, arguing its laws were pre-empted by the FCC’s repeal of the Obama-era . In February 2021, the Justice Department . Later that same month, a federal judge in a separate lawsuit involving multiple telecom trade groups. This week’s ruling upholds that decision.

In its ruling, the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals said the lower court “correctly denied” the preliminary injunction brought against California by the telecom industry. It said the FCC “no longer has the authority” to regulate internet services in the way that it did when it previously classified them as telecommunications services. “The agency, therefore, cannot preempt state action, like SB-822, that protects net neutrality,” the court said.

The four trade groups behind the original lawsuit – the American Cable Association, CTIA, the National Cable and Telecommunications Association and USTelecom – said they were “disappointed” by the decision and that they plan to review their options. “Once again, a piecemeal approach to this issue is untenable and Congress should codify national rules for an open Internet once and for all,” the groups told .

After months of stalemate at the FCC, federal action on net neutrality could come soon. Next week, the Senate Commerce Committee will decide whether to advance Gigi Sohn’s nomination to a full vote of the Senate. President Biden picked Sohn to fill the final empty commissioner seat on the FCC. Her confirmation would give Democrats a three to two edge on the FCC, allowing it to advance the president’s telecom-related policies.