Sen. Rand Paul has launched an effort that could get a bill to the White House to upend net-neutrality efforts.  

The Kentucky Republican announced Wednesday he was proposing to use the Congressional Review Act to block the Federal Communications Commission from moving forward with regulating the Internet as a public utility.  

“This regulation by the FCC is a textbook example of Washington’s desire to regulate anything and everything, and will do nothing more than wrap the Internet in red-tape. The Internet has successfully flourished without the heavy hand of government interference,” Paul said in a statement. “Stated simply, I do not want to see the government regulating the Internet.”  

The Congressional Review Act provides a pathway for joint resolutions of disapproval, such as the one proposed by Paul, to advance through the Senate on an expedited basis that allows them to avoid filibuster threats.  

Disapproval resolutions almost never succeed in becoming law, however. That’s because the president maintains veto power. The exception was an ergonomics rule put into place at the end of the Clinton administration that was nullified by a disapproval resolution signed into law once President George W. Bush was in the White House.  

In this case, while the FCC is independent, Obama has clearly backed the commission’s action.  

Related:

Net Neutrality Is Low-Hanging Fruit for Congress


The 114th: CQ Roll Call’s Guide to the New Congress


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