Why won't they release the rules
It's been less than 24 hours since the Federal Communications Commission voted to approve strict new regulations on Internet providers but that's the leading question coming from its critics.
Conservatives are demanding that the FCC release a full copy of the regulations that it's planning to impose on companies such as Comcast and Verizon and taking the agency's silence as evidence of a cover up. Readers of an FCC blog post have suspiciously mused that these new regulations should have been published by now. It's much the same over on Twitter.
victoriastrauss b_fung If these rules are so wonderful why even after the vote are they STILL being withheld ObamaNet
Sarcastic Texan ( TexanSarcastic) February 26 2015
Let's stop this nonsense right here. It's a stretch to think the FCC is withholding anything. While it was certainly within FCC Chairman Tom Wheeler's power to release his draft proposal before it came to a vote the regulations now must go through a formal process before they become official. And say what you will about bureaucratic inefficiency but that's the chief reason the FCC won't be releasing the rules for some time.
Not even Internet providers who are generally frustrated by the content of the rules are all that outraged about the delay. They're going to see the document sooner or later. And they'll still likely sue to have them overturned.
This is one more step in the swamp there's much more of a slog to come said one wireless industry official who spoke on the condition of anonymity to speak more freely.
It's easy to see how all this secrecy could be confusing. Once a vote takes place and the gavel drops shouldn't that be the moment when the world changes After all it's more or less how elections work right
Well rulemaking is a little bit different.
As is typical for a final rule and order said Kim Hart an FCC spokeswoman the final document is not available until staff makes final edits which must be cleared by each commissioner.
Final edits don't mean a secret attempt by officials to scribble in new regulations at the last minute. Here's what that means instead Under the FCC's procedures dissenting arguments must be tallied up and responded to by the FCC's majority in this case the Democrats.
When that's done probably after a few weeks the FCC will post the rules on the agency's Web site. At that point the public will be able to see the specific language. It'll be another few weeks before the document will be published in the Federal Register the collection of all the rules and notices adopted by the government.
For the most part the rules won't take effect for another 60 days after that. Certain parts of the regulation will take even longer.
Until then a lot of nothing's going to happen said a telecom industry official who asked not to be named to discuss internal deliberations more freely.
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