A $6 billion US broadband stimulus package has attracted the ire of House Republicans for containing open access, network neutrality, minimum speed and deployment clauses.
Joe Barton (R-TX), a ranking member of the Energy and Commerce Committee, raised a red flag on the grounds of good lawmaking.
He’s definitely not looking forward to it, complaining that the process is moving too quickly to make good law; the committee has only a single day to markup the broadband, energy, and health care portions of the bill. “That’s because the speaker wants the entire stimulus package on the House floor next week,” Barton continued. “We all understand that if we don’t accommodate her timetable, she’ll yank the bill away and handle it herself, and the decline of our committee’s status and influence will accelerate.”
Barton hopes that the current bill will take a bipartisan approach, which means a cut for the “controversial provisions on network neutrality, open access, minimum speeds, and build-out requirements.” Meanwhile, groups like Free Press, a digital civil rights group, have already submitted proposals (PDF) which hinge monetary disbursement to the respect of these principles.
Further, stimulus money must be tied to strict build-out schedules and affordability and capacity requirements. This level of public investment should return a network that is world-class — not simplyan incremental improvement over the status quo. The Internet service these subsidies are designed to support also must be an open, freely competitive platform for ideas and commerce.
In the end we shall see how the bill plays out, but a stimulus package meant to enhance the reach of US broadband seems rather silly if it’s not tied to speed, access and deployment requirements.
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