Senate Resolution 10 - Introduced SENATE RESOLUTION NO. 10 BY BOLKCOM , DVORSKY , HART , HOGG , TAYLOR , BISIGNANO , and DANIELSON A Resolution affirming Iowa’s commitment to net 1 neutrality. 2 WHEREAS, broadband Internet access is an essential 3 part of daily life for all people in Iowa and networks 4 are often becoming our basic and only communication 5 platform, and Governor Branstad and the Iowa General 6 Assembly have recognized the importance of extending 7 broadband Internet access to all Iowans; and 8 WHEREAS, access to an open Internet is important 9 for each and every constituent of Iowa as the Internet 10 becomes a driver of our economy, our educational 11 system, our health care services, our government 12 institutions, and our democratic discourse; and 13 WHEREAS, access to an open Internet gives 14 individuals, associations, investors, and entrepreneurs 15 the power to run small businesses, contribute to the 16 marketplace of ideas, partake in civic engagement, and 17 exercise freedom of speech; and 18 WHEREAS, the open Internet developed and thrived 19 under the principle that broadband providers cannot 20 block, discriminate against, or interfere with the 21 lawful content, applications, and services that 22 these broadband networks carry, and that broadband 23 customers may choose to access over the broadband 24 connections; and 25 WHEREAS, this principle, commonly referred to as 26 “net neutrality”, protects innovation and creativity 27 -1- LSB 1754XS (4) 86 ad/sc 1/ 4

S.R. 10 by preventing broadband providers from unreasonably 1 favoring or prioritizing their own voice, video, 2 messaging, or other communications services over 3 offerings from entities unaffiliated with such 4 broadband providers; and 5 WHEREAS, this principle preserved the long-standing 6 ideal of ensuring that communications networks are 7 open to all speakers on similar terms, while ensuring 8 that broadband providers will continue to invest in 9 abundant capacity rather than creating incentives 10 for underinvestment, scarcity, and prioritization of 11 traffic on purposefully congested networks; and 12 WHEREAS, without the continuation of net neutrality, 13 the public will not benefit from competition, job 14 creation, and technological innovation, as our entire 15 economy becomes more vulnerable to the profit motives 16 of large broadband providers that could charge new fees 17 for access to broadband customers; and 18 WHEREAS, violations of net neutrality create 19 uncertainty and the potential for broadband providers 20 to extort fees from Internet sites and thereby threaten 21 Iowa businesses that rely on the Internet, particularly 22 our burgeoning community of technology start-up 23 businesses; and 24 WHEREAS, the federal communications commission’s 25 authority to safeguard net neutrality, and to 26 ensure that our nation’s broadband networks remain 27 competitive, open, and nondiscriminatory in the 28 carriage of our information has come into question as a 29 result of a federal appellate court decision issued in 30 -2- LSB 1754XS (4) 86 ad/sc 2/ 4

S.R. 10 January 2014; NOW THEREFORE, 1 BE IT RESOLVED BY THE SENATE, That the Senate 2 supports an open Internet protected by the principle of 3 net neutrality; and 4 BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED, That the Senate supports 5 the federal communications commission’s adoption of 6 open Internet rules that will categorically protect 7 our state’s residents and businesses from blocking, 8 discrimination, and undue interference by broadband 9 providers with the information the providers carry for 10 their customers; and 11 BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED, That the Senate supports 12 the federal communications commission’s use of 13 that agency’s jurisdiction over all interstate 14 telecommunications services as the basis of its 15 authority to adopt and enforce these protections 16 for the free flow of information over our nation’s 17 essential broadband communications infrastructure; and 18 BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED, That the Senate urges Iowa’s 19 United State senators and representatives to support, 20 and make known their support, for strong net neutrality 21 regulations that mandate that broadband providers 22 not block, discriminate against, or interfere with 23 the lawful content, applications, and services that 24 these broadband networks carry and that broadband 25 customers may choose to access over the broadband 26 connections; and 27 BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED, That the Secretary of 28 the Senate is directed to distribute a copy of this 29 resolution to each member of Iowa’s congressional 30 -3- LSB 1754XS (4) 86 ad/sc 3/ 4