Energy and Commerce Ranking Member Frank Pallone, Jr. (D-NJ) released the following statement today in response to the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) and Federal Trade Commission’s (FTC) release of a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) outlining the agencies’ roles in relation to broadband providers if the FCC votes to roll back consumers’ net neutrality protections later this week and if the Federal Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit, en banc, reverses a lower court decision holding that the FTC may not oversee many broadband providers:
“Today’s agreement between the FCC and FTC underscores the absurdity of Chairman Pai’s proposal to eliminate net neutrality and his plan to abandon the FCC’s statutory responsibilities as the expert agency overseeing our communications networks. Chairman Pai’s plan not only leaves consumers fending for themselves, it is now creating a bureaucratic nightmare with no one left in charge when things inevitably go wrong. And by acting before the Ninth Circuit decides whether the FTC has any authority over broadband providers, this MOU is effectively worthless."
