Montana
spearheads net-neutrality win
On Oct. 1, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Washington, D.C.
Circuit upheld a decision that requires state telecom contractors to adhere to
net-neutrality. Effectively, this order prohibits internet providers from
blocking, slowing down or speeding up access to websites based on their ability
to pay for such a boon. “From the beginning we said that if the federal
government won’t protect our access to a free and open internet, it would be up
to the states,” said Gov. Steve Bullock in a statement praising the court’s
decision. “Montana was the first to act, setting off a nationwide movement of
executive orders and state laws to protect the open internet,” he added. “The
D.C. Circuit confirmed that states can protect their citizens when the federal
government fails them.”