Reps. Tedder, Afendoulis, Barrett, Canfield, Chatfield, Courser, Franz, Gamrat, Glenn, Goike, Hooker, Howrylak, Iden, Jacobsen, Johnson, Kelly, Lauwers, Leutheuser, Maturen, Aaron Miller, Nesbitt, Potvin, Price, Rendon, Somerville and Theis offered the following resolution:

Substitute for House Resolution No. 17.

A resolution to memorialize the President of the United States, the U.S. Congress, and the U.S. Federal Communications Commission to rescind the ruling which regulates broadband Internet services as common carrier services under Title II of the Communications Act of 1934.

Whereas, Due in large part to the unregulated efforts of private enterprise over nearly the past 30 years, the development of the Internet has dramatically transformed the way Michigan citizens work, live, and learn. The deployment of efficient, fast, and reliable broadband networks across Michigan has created thousands of jobs and economic benefits for local economies. The Internet has also revolutionized and enhanced our ability to communicate near and far; and

Whereas, In order to encourage the growth and development of the Internet, the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) has historically followed a policy to refrain from regulating broadband Internet services as common carrier services under Title II of the Communications Act of 1934. As a result, the United States has been at the forefront of technological, business, and social innovation on the Internet; and

Whereas, The FCC met on February 26, 2015 and passed rules that reclassified Internet service as a telecommunications, not information, service. This change and associated rules will allow the FCC to regulate Internet service more stringently, essentially like that of a public utility; and

Whereas, Internet speeds in the United States are among the fastest in the world. More than 90 percent of households are now served by connections capable of speeds of 100 megabits per second, and 76 percent of households have access to three or more high speed Internet providers. Companies that invest in broadband and related applications should have the flexibility to explore fair and competitive business models and pricing plans for their products and services, and mandated net neutrality regulations will hinder future capital investments in the United States’ broadband infrastructure; and

Whereas, The European Union’s Internet regulations have stymied investment in broadband infrastructure and access, resulting in private investments of only $16 billion in high speed Internet and $15 billion in mobile Internet access, compared to $69 billion in high speed Internet and $30 billion in mobile Internet access in the United States. Additionally, only 30 percent of the European Union has high speed wireless broadband, or LTE, coverage, as opposed to 79 percent of the United States; now, therefore, be it

Resolved by the House of Representatives, That we urge Congress to continue efforts to pass legislation that would provide clear rules on Internet protection and not hinder investment in broadband, in place of the FCC’s new rules; and be it further

Resolved, That we memorialize the President of the United States, the U.S. Congress, and the U.S. Federal Communications Commission to rescind the ruling which regulates broadband Internet services as common carrier services under Title II of the Communications Act of 1934; and be it further

Resolved, That copies of this resolution be transmitted to the President of the United States, the President of the U.S. Senate, the Speaker of the U.S. House of Representatives, the members of the Michigan congressional delegation, and the commissioners of the U.S. Federal Communications Commission.