Trumpeting that "the FCC's light-touch approach is working" with regard to repealing the Obama administration's Net Neutrality regulation, Federal Communications Commission Chairman Ajit Pai said Congress has done "the right thing" to keep the Internet "free and open."
"I'm pleased that a strong bipartisan majority of the U.S. House of Representatives declined to reinstate heavy-handed Internet regulation," Pai wrote in a statement. "They did the right thing — especially considering the positive results for American consumers since the adoption of the Restoring Internet Freedom Order."
The House had until the end of the 115th Congress to reinstate Net Neutrality after the Senate passed a bill in May to do so. The bill stalled in the House, and Pai pointed to a successful year without regulation.
"Over the past year, the Internet has remained free and open," Pai's statement continued. "Broadband speeds are up, with download speeds in the United States increasing more than 35 percent in 2018, according to a recent report from Ookla.
"Internet access is also expanding, and the digital divide is closing. For example, a recent report by the Fiber Broadband Association found that fiber was made available to more new homes in 2018 than in any previous year.
"In short, the FCC's light-touch approach is working. In 2019, we'll continue to pursue our forward-looking agenda to bring digital opportunity to all Americans."
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