California May Water Down Net Neutrality Law for Federal Broadband Funds
California is poised to weaken its state-level net neutrality law to secure $1.86 billion in federal broadband grants. The federal government requires states not to enforce net neutrality rules on internet service providers receiving the funds.
California is moving toward compromising its state net neutrality law to accept $1.86 billion in federal broadband grant funds. The U.S. administration has mandated that states cannot enforce net neutrality rules on any internet service provider (ISP) that receives funding from the Broadband Equity, Access, and Deployment (BEAD) program.
This conditionality impacts California, which previously won a legal battle to uphold its own net neutrality legislation. The state law prohibits ISPs from blocking or throttling lawful internet traffic and prevents them from charging websites or online services for prioritized delivery.
The federal government's approach, part of the $42 billion BEAD program, aims to ensure that recipients do not impose state-specific regulations on ISPs that could affect the program's deployment goals.
This move represents a shift for California, potentially rolling back protections that were established to ensure open internet access and fair competition among online services.