City Attorney Pete Holmes and Mayor Jenny Durkan announced that the City of Seattle has joined together with a coalition of 27 other cities and counties across the nation in filing an amicus brief against the Federal Communications Commission’s (FCC’s) repeal of net neutrality. The coalition urged the U.S. Court of Appeals for the D.C. Circuit to strike down the FCC’s order, saying it illegally strips cities of the tools they need to provide critical services, turns internet service providers into gatekeepers of government websites, and could restrict critical government functions, such as law enforcement and traffic management.
“Government websites could be just as affected as your favorite movie streaming service if net neutrality comes to an end,” said Seattle City Attorney Pete Holmes. “Seattle residents and the City itself have a vested interest in seeing net neutrality continue, which is why Mayor Durkan and I felt it so important to join this multi-city coalition.”
“Cities across the country are rejecting the reckless and irresponsible decision by the FCC to dismantle open internet protections. A free and open internet forms the backbone of the twenty-first century economy and allowing internet providers the ability to throttle or deny access to the internet contradicts the fundamental democratic principle of net neutrality,” said Mayor Jenny Durkan. “Fair and open access to the internet levels the playing field for businesses, empowers community organizing, and enables access to education opportunities for people across the nation. Internet service providers should not have the power to decide which services communities across the country can access online.”
According to the brief, the cities would be prevented from addressing harms that can result from internet service providers throttling, blocking, or prioritizing web-based services based on payment. Providers could delay government systems that rely on real-time transmissions to convey information to police and firefighters, issue emergency alert messages, and transmit payment of local taxes or registration for public benefits. The brief cites examples of the numerous systems which could be impacted, including traffic management systems that inform citizens in real-time about parking, driving routes, and public-transportation. Plans to implement these kind of systems are undermined by the new FCC order, which allows internet service providers, for the first time, to block or prioritize web-traffic based on ability to pay.
Mayor Durkan has previously joined with 67 mayors and county officials to express opposition to the FCC’s proposal to roll back current Net Neutrality protections. Further, Mayor Durkan urged Congress to follow Washington State’s lead in protecting internet freedoms in a letter to Congressional leaders earlier this year.
Oral arguments are not yet scheduled in Mozilla v. FCC, the lawsuit in which Seattle joined the amicus brief. In addition to the City of Seattle, the following municipalities, mayors, and municipal associations signed onto the brief, which was developed and spearheaded by New York City:
City of Alexandria, Virginia
City of Baltimore, Maryland
City of Boston, Massachusetts
City of Buffalo, New York
City of Chicago, Illinois
Cook County, Illinois
Mayor Bowser, Washington, DC
City of Gary, Indiana
City of Houston, Texas
City of Ithaca, New York
City of Los Angeles, California
City of Lincoln, Nebraska
City of Madison, Wisconsin
City of Newark, New Jersey
City of New York, New York
City of Oakland, California
Town of Princeton, New Jersey
Mayor and City Council of Portland, Oregon
City of San Jose, California
City of Schenectady, New York
City of Somerville, Massachusetts
City of Springfield, Massachusetts
City of Syracuse, New York
City of Tallahassee, Florida
City of Wilton Manors, Florida
International Municipal Lawyers Association
California State Association of Counties