VICTORY! House Votes to Restore Net Neutrality

On Tuesday, April 9th, the US House of Representatives voted to save the Internet by passing HR-1644, a bill that would restore Title II net neutrality protections that keep cable companies from from throttling traffic, censoring content, and imposing unfair fees. Now we need to win in the Senate.

To win the Senate, we'll need 60 votes in order to avoid a filibuster. That's because the Speaker of the House has declared net neutrality "dead on arrival". That's okay; we like a challenge. After all, a nearly identical measure to restore net neutrality passed a Senate vote "last year"!

So we know that there are Senators on both sides of the aisle who are willing to listen to the American people. But we need help to make sure lawmakers in Congress get the message. Here’s what you can do:

1. Speak out on social media. Here is some suggested copy you can use to spread the word. And be sure to share our awesome graphics to get the word out.
2. Tell everyone to text WATCH to 687-88. They can set a reminder to watch the hearing and pressure their members of Congress to pass a clean bill from their smartphone.
3. Embed the hearing livestream into a blog or Tumblr post with a link back to BattleForTheNet.com. Use the code below to post the hearing livestream and help spread the word. <iframe src="https://player.twitch.tv/?channel=fight_for_the_future&muted=true" frameborder="0" scrolling="no" webkitallowfullscreen mozallowfullscreen allowfullscreen>
4. Add our hearing livestream alert widget to your homepage. Put it up now to start raising awareness ahead of the vote and we'll add the livestream to the Battle for the Net homepage as soon as it’s available.

In 2015, the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) adopted the Open Internet Order to protect Internet users from ISPs throttling traffic, censoring content, and imposing unfair fees. But just a few years later, a new chairman of the FCC killed net neutrality by repealing the Open Internet order. Since then, cable companies like Comcast, AT&T, and Sprint have been rolling out Internet fast lanes and slowing down data being used by competitors’ services.

Americans want net neutrality, and we’ve demanded that our lawmakers pass strong legislation to prevent unelected bureaucrats from changing the rules whenever they want to. And our lawmakers have listened.

The Save the Internet Act of 2019 is a simple, three-page bill that would restore the Open Internet Order by rolling back the FCC’s disastrous decision to destroy net neutrality. If this bill passes the House and the Senate, it will enshrine net neutrality into law. Plain and simple.

Read it for yourself below:

Voters from across the political spectrum agree: they don't want their cable company to control what they see and do online. The FCC's reckless repeal of net neutrality has sparked an unprecedented backlash, as millions of Americans have contacted their lawmakers in protest. The numbers below represent actions taken through BattleForTheNet.com and its partners. Many more have taken action on other sites or contacted their lawmakers directly.

To help convince the House, contact congress now and add to these numbers.

Our scoreboard keeps track of who really supports net neutrality. Members of Congress highlighted in blue are on Team Internet because they’ve cosponsored or voted for the Save the Internet Act. Lawmakers highlighted in red are on Team Cable because they are not yet cosponsors or voted against the bill.

Want to make your voice heard? Check out the map below to find a protest or a meeting with a representative in your state. And if there are no events in your area, consider organizing one!

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Net neutrality is the principle that everyone should have access to websites and apps, preventing Internet providers like Comcast & Verizon from creating “fast lanes,” censoring content, throttling traffic and even outright blocking access to their competitor's products. This principle has guided the world wide web from the beginning, and has been protected by federal policy under Republican AND Democrat leadership since the early 2000s.

Unfortunately, Internet providers ignored this policy and even actively sued the federal government to destroy net neutrality protections … and they won. Their anti-consumer practices finally convinced the FCC to issue the Open Internet Order as a last resort in 2015. But under new leadership, the FCC has removed these regulations, threatening to end the web as we know it.

Want to learn more? Watch these videos!

Members of Team Internet support free speech and free markets online through meaningful, enforceable net neutrality laws. We are everyday Americans from across the political spectrum. We are thousands of small business owners. We are startups, tech giants and grassroots organizations with millions of members. Check out the list below to see who’s taken action to save net neutrality:

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Team Cable wants to end net neutrality so they can control and tax the Internet. Team Cable lies about the effects of net neutrality on the free market and ignores blatant corruption in the regulatory process. If they get their way, we will all pay more money for worse Internet access. Independent voices will be stifled. And innovative start-ups will struggle to compete in the online marketplace.