On Sunday, The Department of Justice sued the state of California to stop the state’s new net neutrality law that “would guarantee full and equal access to the internet” from going into effect.
The suit was filed about an hour after Governor Jerry Brown signed a bill, which would have given California the strongest net neutrality protections in the nation. The new legislation was written in response to the Federal Communications Commission’s rollback of net neutrality last year.
Net neutrality is a hotly contested legal topic. In addition to the DoJ’s suit, broadband providers are expected to file similar cases against California and any states that enact similar rules. Meanwhile, twenty state attorney generals so far have filed suit against the initial rollback of federal regulation.
California’s attorney general Xavier Becerra has stated that California will defend its new law.
Read more about the bill, know as SB822, and the federal government’s response here and here.
