BOSTON — The state Senate this week unanimously approved a bill co-sponsored by Sen. Adam Hinds, D-Pittsfield, that would empower the Department of Telecommunications and Cable to act as a watchdog over internet service providers doing business in Massachusetts.
The bill, as redrafted by the Ways and Means Committee, stopped short of a statewide ban on internet providers blocking access to content or throttling the speed at which certain websites load. Instead, the legislation would create a central registry of internet service providers and require the department to grade ISPs based on service quality, policies on paid prioritization, network management practices and consumer privacy practices, according to a bill summary. ISPs would be required to disclose that grade to each consumer before entering into a contract and at least annually.
The bill abandons what would have been a prohibition on blocking customers from accessing certain content and throttling down the speed at which a customer can connect to certain websites that was included in other bills and recommended by the Senate’s special net neutrality committee.
The principle of net neutrality requires ISPs to act as “neutral” providers, and not interfere or with or “throttle” how quickly or slowly internet content reaches customers.
“The internet should be free and accessible to as many people as possible,” said Hinds, “and Massachusetts consumers should be confident that their ISP fairly manages traffic on its network.”
Under the redraft, ISPs would be required to file an annual disclosure with the department laying out its network management practices, its performance characteristics, commercial terms of its broadband service and privacy policies. By July 1, 2019, state agencies would be required to establish a preference to obtain internet services from an ISP that complies with the department’s standards.
The legislation was endorsed by the Senate Special Committee on Net Neutrality and Consumer Protection, which determined state policy on this matter to be a necessary consumer protection measure in absence of strong federal regulations, according to Hinds.
Last year, the Trump administration rolled back Obama-era FCC rules, allowing ISPs freedom to engage in preferential treatment in ways that were previously banned, as long as they disclosed what they are doing.
The legislation requires DTC to develop a user-friendly grading system that consumers can easily understand, similar to the restaurant grading system now employed by many local public health departments. ISPs will be graded on how effectively they provide net neutral services and protect customer privacy. If an ISP voluntarily complies with best practices, as determined by the department, they will be allowed to display the newly created “Massachusetts Net Neutrality and Consumer Privacy Seal” on their marketing materials.
The bill also requires state agencies to give preference to ISPs providing net neutral service when issuing state procurement contracts and updates the municipal light plant law to make it clear that municipalities can build and run their own “last mile” internet networks.
Editor’s Note: This article also contains reporting from the Associated Press.