Republicans plot campaign against FCC broadband regulation

Republican anger over Federal Communications Commission Chairman Julius Genachowski's proposal last week to subject broadband service to increased regulation has boiled over into legislative efforts to stall or block him.

Rep. Cliff Stearns of Florida, the ranking Republican on the House Energy and Commerce Communications Subcommittee, plans to introduce a bill on Tuesday that sets a high bar for fresh Internet regulations and would force FCC to justify such changes to Congress.

"The bill is very simple," Stearns said in an interview. "What it says is: Prove to us there is market failure." While Stearns acknowledged that his measure can't pass the Democratic-controlled House, he said it would deliver a strong message to FCC that Congress wants its voice heard.

Genachowski stirred up controversy last week when he recommended regulating broadband as a public utility in response to a recent court decision that undermined the agency's existing authority over the technology. The FCC chief sought to portray his proposal as a compromise, noting that high-speed Internet providers would be exempt from some requirements, such as regulated prices, that normally accompany classification as a public utility.

Republicans in both chambers and telecommunications and cable giants weren't buying it. The move unleashed a torrent of criticism from GOP members, including assertions that the Democratic chairman was attempting to orchestrate a government takeover of the Internet.

The backlash appears poised to extend into the appropriations process. Congressional and industry sources said there's chatter about the possibility of seeking riders designed to block FCC from using fiscal 2011 funding to implement its third way approach.

Stearns indicated he would like to block Genachowski's proposed expansion of the agency's network neutrality rules governing the Internet's openness. The planned revisions, tentatively approved by the commission's three Democrats in October, were thrown into jeopardy by the judicial ruling.

The Florida lawmaker's bill on broadband regulation is backed so far by Reps. Roy Blunt, R-Mo., and Marsha Blackburn, R-Tenn., who introduced a one-page bill in October that would prevent FCC from proposing or issuing any Internet-related regulations.

The House version and a counterpart, authored by Sen. John McCain, R-Ariz., are garnering increased attention from conservatives in the wake of Genachowski's latest announcement.

Americans for Prosperity, Americans for Tax Reform, Citizens Against Government Waste, National Taxpayers Union and other like-minded groups -- several of whom are members of the Internet Freedom Coalition -- plan a news conference on Capitol Hill on Tuesday to express opposition to FCC proposal and introduce a website, noInternettakeover.com.

Stearns, who is scheduled to participate, said he expects to introduce his measure shortly after the event concludes.