Sen. Cruz Wants to Strip FCC of 706 Authority

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As part of the ongoing debate about what authority the FCC should use to support new network neutrality rules, Sen. Ted Cruz (R-Tex.) says the FCC should not be dictating how Internet services are provided, period, and will introduce legislation to try and make that the law of the land.

"I will be introducing legislation that would remove the claimed authority for the FCC to take such actions, specifically the Commission's nebulous Sec. 706 authority," he said in a statement.

Cruz said that Congress should be making the calls about how to modernize telecom laws.

Legislators on both sides of the issue were weighing in big time Wednesday on the eve of the FCC's planned vote on new rules.

John Eggerton
John Eggerton

Contributing editor John Eggerton has been an editor and/or writer on media regulation, legislation and policy for over four decades, including covering the FCC, FTC, Congress, the major media trade associations, and the federal courts. In addition to Multichannel News and Broadcasting + Cable, his work has appeared in Radio World, TV Technology, TV Fax, This Week in Consumer Electronics, Variety and the Encyclopedia Britannica.