PITTSBURGH, March 16, 2016 – ACA President and CEO Matthew M. Polka issued the following statement on passage today of the Small Business Broadband Deployment Act by a unanimous vote of 411-0 in the U.S. House of Representatives:
“ACA is very pleased with unanimous House passage of this bill, which showed broad bipartisan support for providing a five-year exemption for Internet Service Providers (ISPs) with 250,000 subscribers or fewer from the Federal Communications Commission’s Open Internet enhanced transparency requirements. As ACA has explained many times to the FCC, application of the enhanced transparency requirements to smaller ISPs offered limited benefit to their customers while subjecting these ISPs to substantial burdens.
“ACA thanks House Communications and Technology Subcommittee Chairman Rep. Greg Walden (R-Ore.) and Rep. Dave Loebsack (D-Ia.) for designing a bill that will provide targeted relief to a category of ISPs that clearly needed it. It is important to note that these ISPs will continue to comply with transparency rules that were in effect prior to adoption of the FCC’s enhanced transparency rules in February 2015.”
About the American Cable Association: Based in Pittsburgh, the American Cable Association is a trade organization representing nearly 750 smaller and medium-sized, independent cable companies who provide broadband services for nearly 7 million cable subscribers primarily located in rural and smaller suburban markets across America. Through active participation in the regulatory and legislative process in Washington, D.C., ACA’s members work together to advance the interests of their customers and ensure the future competitiveness and viability of their business. For more information, visit https://acaconnects.org/