Subcommittee Chairwoman Latta Delivers Opening Remarks at FCC Budget Hearing

Washington – House Energy and Commerce Subcommittee on Communications and Technology Chairman Bob Latta (R-OH) delivered the following remarks to open today’s subcommittee meeting: hearing titled “Federal Communications Commission Budget for Fiscal Year 2025.”

“This is the third time this Congress has had an FCC hearing before us, and I am pleased that we are maintaining a rhythm of consistent oversight hearings.

“I would like to begin by extending the condolences of the Rosenworcel Chair Committee on the death of her father. We hope that your memories of him have helped you cope during this difficult time. While we disagree on politics, we can come together to share our grief.”

BIDEN’S TAKEOVER OF BROADBAND INTERNET

“The last time the FCC was with us, we discussed its role in President Biden’s broadband takeover and overregulation of the communications industry.

“Unfortunately, the agency just went down that route.

“Earlier this year, the FCC voted to reclassify broadband Internet access as a common telecommunications service provider under Title II of the Communications Act.

“Under the guise of ‘net neutrality,’ this action expands the FCC’s authority over broadband Internet access, allowing the agency to impose burdensome regulations that make it harder for providers to deploy broadband Internet access.”

“As I have stated before, this action is completely unnecessary. In 2017, after the FCC reversed the Obama FCC’s broadband reclassification, Democrats told the world that we would get the internet word for word and that the internet as we knew it would end.

“As we all know, none of these fears came true.

“I asked my office to keep track of how many of my constituents called after the repeal to say they had lost internet access. I didn’t get a single call.

Instead, broadband networks have flourished thanks to increased investment by private companies, which has led to higher speeds and lower prices.

“Our networks truly stood the ultimate stress test when they withstood the increased usage resulting from the Covid-19 pandemic, with almost every aspect of daily life moving online.”

BULLISH REGULATIONS RESTRICT ACCESS TO THE INTERNET

“Compare what happened in the United States to what happened in Europe, where regulators had to ask websites like YouTube and Netflix to throttle their bandwidth and degrade their service quality to meet increased demand.

“During our last hearing, Chairwoman Rosenworcel attributed our success to states enacting their own net neutrality policies, but nothing could be further from the truth.

“The internet functioned normally between the repeal and states enacting their own laws, with only a handful of states taking action and none enacting anything resembling the utility regulations that the FCC repealed and is now reintroducing.

“The real source of our networks’ success was the fragile regulatory framework that the FCC just walked away from.

“This action is just one of many the FCC has taken to undermine U.S. technology leadership. The net effect of these decisions is that broadband deployment and service delivery will be more challenging for providers.

“These actions could not have come at a worse time. Congress has appropriated $42.5 billion to close the digital divide. The commission is undermining that effort by imposing regulations that will make implementation more expensive and burdensome when it should be doing the opposite.

“I urge the FCC to reverse course and restore the benign regulatory environment that has allowed broadband investment to thrive.

“I have many questions about the direction the Commission is taking and I thank the Commissioners for coming here today. I look forward to discussing these and other important issues before the Commission.”