Regulatory classification

You’d be hard-pressed to find many people who don’t intuitively consider the internet essential infrastructure, and their broadband service an essential utility. The last time Congress comprehensively addressed how we should govern the communications landscape was the Telecommunications Act of 1996. Thirty years ago, we went on the internet.

The Broadband Equity Access and Deployment Program has lived a highly dramatic life since Congress created it as part of the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law.The most recent high-stakes drama involves the state of California.

California is on the verge of accepting $1.86 billion in federal broadband grant funds, despite the Trump administration telling states they cannot enforce net neutrality rules on any Internet service provider that gets a piece of the grant money.

The Communications Act is badly outdated. Congress last made major changes to it in 1996—when the Internet was relatively new, before smartphones, and before streaming video. When Congress is able to take up major legislation again, it should replace the current law with a new Communications Act designed for how Americans communicate today and as they are likely to in the years to come.

February 8, 2026, marked 30 years since the Telecommunications Act of 1996, the first major overhaul of U.S. communications law since 1934. Designed to deregulate the industry and open markets to competition, the legislation aimed to break up entrenched monopolies and lower costs for consumers. For MetTel, the anniversary is more than just symbolic. The company’s origins are directly tied to the law’s creation.

A more targeted approach or full repeal?

In a fireside chat at the Benton Institute for Broadband and Society’s March 5 event, “Telecom Act at 30”, Benton Senior Fellow and Public Advocate Gigi Sohn spoke with former Deputy Assistant Secretary of State Phil Verveer, who served as lead counsel in United States v.

The Telecommunications Act of 1996 sought to replace monopoly protection with competition in an industry shaped by decades of regulation. While the Telecom Act removed legal barriers, many of its most detailed provisions—particularly those designed to manage entry and preserve service-based categories—failed to produce the industry structure policymakers envisioned. This paper from the American Enterprise Institute argues that these outcomes reflect a broader lesson about regulating evolving technologies.

Whether it’s private equity, corporate capital, or government funding, there's a healthy stream of money flowing into broadband networks. TIA CEO Dave Stehlin argued that while broadband is “critical,” it’s not a utility—and it can’t ever be considered so if the country wants funding to keep rolling. He noted 2024 alone saw U.S. operators spend over $90 billion on capital expenditures and network buildouts.

The Department of Justice’s Antitrust Division welcomed President Donald Trump’s decision to revoke Executive Order 14036, a Biden-era directive with sweeping implications for technology and broadband policy. Issued by former President Joe Biden on July 9, 2021, Executive Order 14036 contained provisions urging the DOJ and Federal Trade Commission to apply stricter antitrust review to mergers in broadband, cable, and Big Tech, warning that consolidation often hurts consu