The Council for Citizens Against Government Waste (CCAGW) is reportedly opposing H.R. 5353, the Internet Freedom Preservation Act of 2008. The House Subcommittee on Telecommunications and the Internet held hearings on this act yesterday.

 

CCAGW president Tom Schatz that anytime Congress attempts to protect anything, it usually means more regulation, less competition, less consumer choice, and higher costs.

 

He said the market for high-speed Internet services should remain open to competition without government interference.

 

H.R. 5353 inserts net neutrality principles into the 1934 Telecommunications Act and defines broadband policy. Although H.R. 5353 adds heavy-handed government regulation and oversight, it ignores the fact that consumers have more Internet choices than ever before. Today, cable, satellite and wireless broadband providers are competing head-to-head for customers. In a bid to beat competition they are providing better services at lower prices.

 

According to a press release, Internet providers have undertaken self-governing measures, such as the “connectivity principles” created by the High Tech Coalition and adopted by the Federal Communications Commission. These measures have allowed both innovation and investment to flourish. The advancement of high-speed services and the Internet could be hampered by the burden of premature regulation under the guise of net neutrality.

 

Schatz said H.R. 5353 would impede the evolution of the Internet and the innovation it encourages. He said that this kind of aggressive law-making hurts taxpayers, violates common sense, and impedes the principles of the free market.

 

“I urge Congress to oppose H.R. 5353 and instead, let competition flourish,” he added.

 

The Council for Citizens Against Government Waste is a nonpartisan, nonprofit organization. As the lobbying arm of Citizens Against Government Waste, CCAGW

is dedicated to eliminating waste, fraud, abuse, and mismanagement in government.