Chairman Pai hasn’t finalized net neutrality repeal—here’s a theory on why

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More than four months after the Federal Communications Commission voted to repeal network neutrality rules, the rules are technically still on the books, and we still don't know when they will die their final death. Why are the rules still in place? There's a technical answer related to how Pai structured the repeal, and there is speculation on why Pai structured it that way.

The technical answer is that the repeal is contingent on US Office of Management and Budget [OMB] approval of modified information collection requirements. Chairman Ajit Pai's FCC got around to submitting the information collection changes to the OMB on March 28. The OMB will stop accepting public comments on the changes after April 27, but we don't know when the OMB will issue a final decision. But, Public Knowledge senior vice president Harold Feld has some guesses as to why the FCC followed the slower process. "The kindest interpretation is that since the majority have made their (weakened) disclosure rule the centerpiece of why they can relax the rules, they don't want the repeal to go into effect without the new transparency rule," Feld said. But Feld thinks it's more likely that Chairman Pai chose a slower repeal process to give Congressional Republicans time to implement a weaker set of net neutrality rules without the distraction of Internet providers operating in a rule-free environment. If the rules were eliminated this week and ISPs began violating net neutrality while Congress is negotiating a permanent net neutrality law, it would be harder for Republicans to force Democrats to compromise, Feld said. "This has all been about trying to push Democrats to compromise and adopt weak legislation."


Chairman Pai hasn’t finalized net neutrality repeal—here’s a theory on why