Loudermilk: Internet Privacy Regulation Is 'Senseless'

KENNESAW, GA -- Following the House of Representatives' vote Tuesday to overturn an Obama Administration regulation that would have mandated that Internet service providers get customers' approval before selling their data, a local politician who backed the measure is speaking out.

U.S. Rep. Barry Loudermilk, who represents Georgia's 11th District, covering parts of Cobb, Bartow and Cherokee counties, said that the regulation was "senseless" and symbolized federal government overreach.

"If a regulation is justified, it should apply across the board, not a targeted sub-segment of an industry. Today, I voted to peel back this senseless rule and restore freedom and proper privacy protections to Americans,” Loudermilk said in a statement late Tuesday.

The House vote follows the lead of the Senate, who voted to overturn the regulation, even though it has yet to be enacted.

“Internet technology innovation has flourished over the past decade, primarily because this segment of our economy has been relatively free from government over-regulation," Loudermilk said. "However, during the past eight years, there were numerous efforts by the federal government to push regulations upon the technology sector. While some government intervention is occasionally justified to protect the privacy of citizens, in this case the Federal Communications Commission overstepped its bounds, implementing a rule that only targeted internet service providers, but not other internet technology companies."

Internet service providers -- the Comcasts, Verizons and AT&Ts of the world -- collect untold reams of data on consumers, yet they argued that the regulation would unfairly hamper their business practices while companies like Google and Facebook could continue to pull in the same information unhampered.

The vote did not sit well with everybody though.

“It is extremely disappointing that Congress is sacrificing the privacy rights of Americans in the interest of protecting the profits of major internet companies including Comcast, AT&T, and Verizon. President Trump now has the opportunity to veto this resolution and show he is not just a president for CEOs but for all Americans. Trump should use his power to protect everyone’s right to privacy," ACLU Legislative Counsel Neema Singh Guliani said after the repeal, according to broadcastingcable.com.

The rollback is expected to get easy approval from President Trump after the White House said the regulation "departs from the technology-neutral framework for online privacy."

Image via