Tag Archives: legislation

A federal appeals court on Tuesday issued a mixed ruling on the Federal Communications Commission repeal of Obama-era net neutrality rules. The court upheld the FCC’s repeal of the rules, but struck down a key provision that blocked states from passing their own net neutrality protections. The DC Circuit Court of Appeals also remanded another …

A much-anticipated federal appellate court decision on net neutrality gave both sides of the debate a chance to claim victory. In a nearly 200-page opinion issued Tuesday, the DC Circuit Court of Appeals upheld most of the Federal Communications Commission’s repeal of Obama-era rules on internet traffic. The court agreed that the agency hadn’t overreached its authority when it deregulated …

Edan Alva started driving for Lyft more than four years ago as your typical side hustle. Then he lost his job and began relying on his Lyft wages to pay the bills. It didn’t take take long for Alva to realize he couldn’t make enough to pay for rent or his son’s health insurance.  “[Lyft] seemed like a promising solution, …

President Donald Trump may be ready to ease some restrictions on Huawei, but new bipartisan legislation aims to keep the Chinese tech giant blacklisted. The Defending America’s 5G Future Act, led by Arkansas Republican Sen. Tom Cotton and Maryland Democrat Sen. Chris van Hollen, would prohibit the removal of Huawei from the government’s Entity List without an act of Congress.  “Huawei isn’t …

The US Congress is moving forward on key piece of legislation designed to lay the regulatory framework for blockchain technology and to see how the government could benefit from its use. The Senate Commerce, Science and Transportation Committee on Tuesday approved the Blockchain Promotion Act, bipartisan legislation that directs the Department of Commerce to come up with a standard definition …

As tech companies double down on promises to better protect users’ privacy, the US government may have other ideas. Senior Trump officials reportedly met Wednesday to discuss asking Congress to pass legislation that would stop tech companies from using encryption that law enforcement can’t break, according to a report from Politico.  The National Security Council meeting to deliberate the encryption issue …

A new piece of legislation aims to put pressure on tech companies to show that they’re politically neutral. At risk is the tech companies’ immunity over content published on their platforms. Sen. Josh Hawley, a Republican from Missouri, introduced on Wednesday the Ending Support for Internet Censorship Act, which would remove tech companies’ automatic immunity, provided in Section 230 of …

When Philadelphia City Councilman Bill Greenlee heard that a coffee shop and a salad restaurant right near City Hall didn’t accept cash, he thought it sounded unfair. “I can get my coffee and muffin, but the person behind me who has the monetary unit of the United States of America, that’s been accepted here in Philadelphia since Ben Franklin, can’t?” …

The Senate voted Thursday in favor of bipartisan legislation to help stop annoying robocalls on your phone. The Telephone Robocall Abuse Criminal Enforcement and Deterrence (TRACED) Act passed 97-1 and had more than 80 co-sponsors. The bill, introduced by Sens. John Thune, a Republican from South Dakota, and Ed Markey, a Democrat from Massachusetts, would improve enforcement policies, such as criminalizing …

An Apple representative is warning California lawmakers that they should reject legislation designed to make it easier for consumers to repair their own electronics, because the consumers might wind up hurting themselves, Motherboard reported Tuesday. California’s Right to Repair bill would require manufacturers of electronics to make repair information, diagnostic tools and service parts available to device owners and independent …