When Does Net Neutrality End? Order Published, April Effective Date

The United States Federal Communication Commission’s order to repeal net neutrality protections were officially published Thursday in the Federal Register. The order will go into effect April 23—60 days from its date of publication.

Once it goes into effect, the FCC’s “Restoring Internet Freedom Order" will undo an Obama-era regulation that allowed the FCC to enforce net neutrality—a principle that required internet service providers not to discriminate against data.

Under the old rules, established in 2015, internet service providers were reclassified as common carriers so the FCC had legal authority to regulate them. The governing body enforced the three brightline rules of net neutrality, which prohibited internet service providers from blocking content, slowing or throttling connections and offering favorable service to those who pay more.

The concept of net neutrality will continue to exist after the Restoring Internet Freedom Order goes into effect in April, but the FCC’s ability to enforce it will be gone, as the new rule undoes the ISP classification and strips the FCC of its regulatory power over the companies.

During the remaining 60 days before the Restoring Internet Freedom Order becomes law, there is expected to be a considerable amount of push back to prevent it from going into effect or to mitigate the effect it will have on consumers.

New York Attorney General Eric Schneiderman announced last month that he was filing a legal challenge against the FCC’s Restoring Internet Freedom Order. Schneiderman has investigated the legitimacy of comments left during the FCC’s public commenting period for the order and has reported to have found comments that have falsely used the personal information of people who did not post them.

Schneiderman’s lawsuit is a multi-state effort to the FCC in order to “stop the FCC’s illegal rollback of net neutrality.” The Attorneys General of 22 states have signed on to the legal challenge.

Lawmakers have also pursued an effort to put forward a Congressional Review Act resolution that would “restore the Open Internet Order and reverse the FCC’s historic mistake of repealing net neutrality.” As of last month, the bill was one Republican vote shy in the U.S. Senate of having the majority needed to enact the resolution—though it is unlikely the effort would find the support needed in the House of Representatives.

Perhaps the best chance for net neutrality advocates is enacting legislation protecting net neutrality on the state level. Advocacy group Free Press recently reported 25 states have introduced bills that would allow the states to enforce net neutrality protections on behalf of their citizens.

A number of cities have also joined the fight. Nearly 70 mayors and county leaders have signed on to a letter objecting to the FCC’s decision and arguing the rollback of net neutrality protections will further the digital divide and stifle economic growth.