

Court Skeptical of FCC's Power to Impose Net Neutrality - grellas
http://www.redorbit.com/news/technology/1807004/court_skeptical_of_fccs_power_to_impose_net_neutrality/index.html?source=r_technology

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grellas
This case, before the D.C. Court of Appeals, just had oral arguments on the
question whether the FCC has legitimate authority to impose its net-neutrality
rules.

With a three-judge panel to render a decision, the FCC got some cold water
thrown on it during the arguments.

Chief Judge David Sentelle, addressing the FCC's claim that it had implied
authority to impose the rules: "You can't get an unbridled, roving commission
to go about doing good."

Questioning the FCC's general counsel about where in the underlying
communications statute (giving the FCC its ultimate authority) the agency
could justify its order imposing an open-Internet policy, Judge A. Raymond
Randolph said: "You have yet to identify a specific statute." (Judge Randolph
repeatedly stated from the bench that the legal provisions cited by the FCC
were mere policy statements that can't justify the FCC action.)

That's two out of three judges expressing _extreme_ skepticism about the FCC's
authority to act as it did here. Having argued legal cases in just situations,
I would say that, at least at this level, the FCC's action is very likely
about to be struck down.

