Brendan Carr: Democrat FCC ‘Digital Discrimination’ Rule Would ‘Micromanage’ the Internet

Commissioner of Federal Communications Commission Brendan Carr testifies during an oversig
ALEX WONG/POOL/AFP via Getty Images
Sean Moran

FCC Commissioner Brendan Carr said in a statement Monday that the agency’s proposed “digital discrimination” rule would “micromanage” every part of the internet.

In November 2021, Congress adopted, and President Joe Biden signed, the so-called $1.2 trillion Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act. The legislation, which did not do much to improve infrastructure, contained a provision requiring the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) to adopt rules by November 15, 2025, to “prevent” and identify necessary steps to “eliminate” digital discrimination.

As part of the rulemaking process, FCC Chair Jessica Rosenworcel created the Task Force to Prevent Digital Discrimination.

Breitbart News documented how 19 Senate Republicans and 13 House Republicans helped pass one of Biden’s signature bills of his administration.

Carr, one of the Republican-nominated commissioners at the FCC, said he has grave concerns for the digital discrimination rule, contending it would give the agency wide regulatory authority over the internet:

For the first time ever, those rules would give the federal government a roving mandate to micromanage nearly every aspect of how the Internet functions — from how ISPs allocate capital and where they build, to the services that consumers can purchase; from the profits that ISPs can realize and how they market and advertise services, to the discounts and promotions that consumers can receive. Talk about central planning.

The FCC Commissioner said the rule would also give the FCC the right to regulate prices:

President Biden’s plan includes price controls. Last month, at the eleventh hour, the FCC slightly softened its proposal to use its Title II proceeding to regulate broadband rates. Now we know why. The Section 60506 order that the FCC will vote on next week expressly states that the FCC can use it to regulate broadband pricing and even an ISP’s profitability. Title II is no longer necessary to achieve that end. But the Section 60506 rules do more than that. The FCC arrogates to itself the power to review and determine the lawfulness of promotional pricing and discounts. It even puts the use of credit checks squarely in the cross hairs. Of course, Congress did not give the FCC the power to do any of this — the agency just creates it out of whole cloth.

“In fact, the FCC cites a few such actions in its draft order that were raised in the record — including eliminating government-imposed barriers and regulatory red tape that have been slowing down broadband builds,” Carr concluded in his statement. “But instead of going that route, the FCC opts for this ideological approach instead.”

Industry groups and telecommunications providers such as the NCTA — The Internet and Television Association, as well as USTelecom, suggested in filings to the FCC that they may challenge the Democrat digital discrimination rule.

Evan Swarztrauber, a former senior adviser under Carr and former FCC Chairman Ajit Pai, wrote, “The @FCC is claiming the power to control every aspect of broadband infrastructure and the industry itself. To call it “extreme” or “radical” doesn’t do this proposal justice. It includes price controls, forced buildout of broadband regardless of ROI, and more.”

Nathan Leamer, a former senior adviser under Pai, wrote, “This Biden Digital Equity Plan is a disaster. Fully expect it will result in cellphones with pronouns.”

Sean Moran is a policy reporter for Breitbart News. Follow him on Twitter @SeanMoran3.

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