During a Communications and Technology Subcommittee Hearing on Wednesday, House Republicans pushed for a resolution to eliminate ‘net neutrality’ rules recently adopted by the Federal Communications Commission (FCC).

The ‘net neutrality’ regulations, approved by the FCC in December 2010, require internet service providers (ISPs) to allow their customers to have access all legal online content, applications and services over their wired networks and prohibit unreasonable network discrimination.

The new rules are meant to ‘preserve and promote the open and interconnected nature of the public Internet’ but Republican critics have said the regulations amount to a ‘government takeover of the Internet.’

‘Today we have a hearing and markup on network neutrality and H. J. Res. 37, the resolution of disapproval I introduced to stop the FCC from regulating the Internet,’ Rep. Greg Walden (R-OR) explained. ‘There is no crisis warranting the FCC’s deviation from our historical hands-off approach. Rather than show an actual problem, the FCC relies on speculation of future harm.’

Because Rep. Walden introduced the resolution under the Congressional Review Act, it only requires a simply majority in each chamber of Congress to pass and cannot be filibustered. In addition, the resolution cannot be amended.

‘There is no crisis warranting intervention,’ House Energy and […]