Author: Klint Finley / Source: WIRED
You might be seeing a lot of red on the internet Wednesday. Many sites, including Etsy, Reddit, and OKCupid will adorn their pages with “red alerts” asking readers to tell their representatives to save net neutrality.
Last December, the Federal Communications Commission voted to jettison its Obama-era rules forbidding broadband providers from blocking, throttling, or otherwise discriminating against legal content. The change has not taken effect yet. But Wednesday, Democratic Senator Ed Markey of Massachusetts will try to force the Senate to schedule a vote on his proposal to reverse the December decision. He has the support to do so, but it’s not clear when the vote would take place.
Markey’s maneuver is an attempt to employ the Congressional Review Act, which allows Congress to overturn decisions made by federal agencies. So far, 50 senators have agreed to back the legislation—all of the chamber’s Democrats and independents, plus Maine Republican Susan Collins. With Senator John McCain (R-Arizona) ill and absent, the legislation could pass 50 to 49 if all of its supporters vote in favor.
The measure would still face long odds, however. Republicans, who tend to support the FCC’s move to repeal net neutrality, hold a solid majority in the House of Representatives. If it were to pass the House, the measure would also need the signature of President Trump or a two-thirds vote in both houses of Congress to override a veto.
Organizers of the “Red Alert” campaign want sites to carry banners or other notifications urging lawmakers to vote for Markey’s legislation until the vote. Etsy manager of public policy Ilyssa Meyer says the e-commerce site will do just that.
Even if Markey’s legislation fails, net neutrality won’t be entirely dead. Several states have passed their own…
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