Pallone & Doyle Question Pai on Faulty Broadband Data

Washington, D.C. – Energy and Commerce Ranking Member Frank Pallone, Jr. (D-NJ) and Communications and Technology Subcommittee Ranking Member Mike Doyle (D-PA) sent a letter to Federal Communications Commission (FCC) Chairman Ajit Pai today reiterating their concerns about the faulty broadband deployment data at FCC and asking him whether this data was used in the Commission's decision to repeal net neutrality consumer protections.

Section 706 of the Telecommunications Act of 1996 requires the FCC to conduct an annual inquiry into the availability of advanced telecommunications capability so that it can then take action to remedy any deficiencies. Yet, experts have repeatedly testified before Congress stating that this data is not reliable and that these flaws have led to FCC data and maps that consistently overstate broadband coverage, creating a perception that competition is more robust than it is.

Last August, Pallone, Doyle, and nine other Democrats on the Energy and Commerce Committee specifically raised these concerns in the comments they submitted in the Commission's proceeding to eliminate net neutrality. In those comments, they wrote: "[b]efore moving forward, the FCC should first correct its data, as required." The FCC did not acknowledge this concern in its ultimate order eviscerating net neutrality, as it was required to do by the Administrative Procedures Act.

"Just months later, the Commission unveiled a new broadband map, which we hoped would show the Commission had worked to improve its data. Yet by all accounts, this map continues to wildly misrepresent the availability of broadband to Americans across the country and demonstrates that the Commission has failed to respond to the bipartisan, bicameral calls for accurate data," Pallone and Doyle wrote to Pai. "We are particularly concerned that such unrepresentative data were used as the basis of the Commission's decision to undo consumers' net neutrality protections."

Pallone and Doyle requested answers from Pai to the following questions included in the letter:

• Did the Commission rely on erroneous "facts" gleaned from faulty form 477 data to support its reasoning in the Restoring Internet Freedom proceeding that ultimately rolled back net neutrality? Please provide a yes or no answer and a brief explanation.
• If the Commission did use the data from its Form 477 in the Restoring Internet Freedom proceeding, how did the Commission confirm the accuracy of the data? Please provide any technical analysis performed by Commission staff to ensure that that its data was accurate.
• If the Commission did not use the Form 477 data to make its final determination to eliminate net neutrality protections, on which data was its decision based?
• If the Commission did not use the Form 477 data to support its findings in the Restoring Internet Freedom Order, why has the Commission deemed these data sufficient for other Commission purposes, such as for use in making decisions on how to deploy funding from the Universal Service Fund, but not a sufficient basis for supporting its decision to reverse net neutrality protections? Please explain.

The letter is available HERE.

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