Sen. Casey opposes FCC plan to boost its authority

Working with stakeholders “to
explore focused legislation that would expand the FCC’s net neutrality
guidelines and provide the commission the specific authority it would now need”
is the most productive option, he said. Casey also noted that reclassification
would be subject to “protracted legal challenges.”

Casey is the second
Senate Democrat to lobby against Genachowski’s proposal, along with Sen. Debbie
Stabenow (D-Mich.), who opposed it last month. The majority of lawmakers have spoken out against the effort, including about 80 Democrats.

The chairmen of the commerce
panels proposed a telecom overhaul in May after an April federal appeals court
decision thrust the commission’s regulatory authority into question. But such an overhaul
seems “almost certain to stretch into the 112th Congress, if not beyond,” Casey
said.

The senator’s endorsement of
a narrow broadband deal meshes with agency efforts to negotiate a settlement
with stakeholders.

Top agency officials have
been meeting with Internet service providers and Internet companies to see if
they can come to an agreement. Those talks have included AT&T, Verizon and
the National Cable and Telecommunications Association (NCTA) as well as Google,
Skype and the Open Internet Coalition.

Comcast is headquartered in Casey’s home state and is a significant employer there.

Broadband service providers
worry that the reclassification plan could prompt the agency to say it
has enough authority to impose strict net neutrality rules. These regulations
would police how the companies deliver Internet traffic, in the name of consumer
protection.