WASHINGTON — A federal appeals court upheld on Tuesday the repeal of so-called net neutrality rules, but said that the Federal Communications Commission had overstepped in the repeal by broadly blocking state and local governments from writing their own rules.
The mixed ruling, by the United States Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit, gave both supporters and opponents of net neutrality a chance to declare victory on an issue that has bubbled up occasionally for more than a decade.
The 2017 repeal reversed the agency’s 2015 decision, during the Obama administration, to have stronger oversight over broadband providers as Americans have migrated to the internet for most communications. It reflected the view of the Trump administration and the new F.C.C. chairman that unregulated business would help the economy.
The appeals court upheld the F.C.C.’s decision to reverse its utility-style, or “common carrier,” regulation of broadband providers like AT&T, Comcast and Verizon.
“Regulation of broadband Internet has been the subject of protracted litigation, with broadband providers subjected to and then released from common carrier regulation over the previous decade,” the court wrote in its opinion. “We decline to yet again flick the on-off switch of common-carrier regulation under these circumstances.”
This is a developing story. It will be updated.