{"database": "press", "table": "releases", "rows": [["http://www.leahy.senate.gov/press/judiciary-chairman-leahy-presses-leading-broadband-providers_to-fight-against-internet-fast-lanes--", "Judiciary Chairman Leahy Presses Leading Broadband Providers  To Fight Against Internet Fast Lanes", "2014-10-23", "2014", "2014-10", "Democrat", "House", "VT", "Patrick Leahy", "L000174", "www.leahy.senate.gov", null, null, "legacy", "10.23.14\n\t\t\t Judiciary Chairman Leahy Presses Leading Broadband Providers  To Fight Against Internet Fast Lanes   \n\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t \n\t\t\n\t\n\t\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\t\n\t\t\n        \n\t\t\t\t Leahy Continues His Call for AT&T, Verizon, and other Internet Service Providers To Demonstrate Their Commitment to an Open Internet\n\t\t\t\n\t\t\t WASHINGTON (Thursday, October 23, 2014) \u2013 Following a letter to Comcast sent earlier this week, Senate Judiciary Committee Chairman Patrick Leahy (D-Vt.) on Thursday continued his call for leading broadband providers to take a stand against fast lanes on the Internet.\u00a0 In letters sent to AT&T, Verizon, Time Warner Cable, and Charter Communications, Leahy pressed for concrete commitments that the companies will not enter into paid prioritization agreements to charge websites for priority access over the Internet.\u00a0\r\n\u201cAllowing the Internet to become a two-tiered system of \u2018haves\u2019 and \u2018have-nots,\u2019 controlled by a small number of corporate gatekeepers, would destroy everything that has made it one of the greatest innovations in human history,\u201d Leahy wrote in the letters.\u00a0 \u201cWe need meaningful pledges from our Nation\u2019s broadband providers that they share the American public\u2019s commitment to an Internet that remains open and equally accessible to all.\u201d\r\nLeahy previously raised concerns about a tiered Internet at a Judiciary Committee hearing in April, and he chaired hearings in July and September on the need to keep the Internet open to all Americans.\u00a0 He also introduced legislation with Congresswoman Doris Matsui (D-Calif.) that would ban paid prioritization arrangements.\r\nFollowing a similar request to Comcast earlier this week, Leahy asked each broadband provider \u201cto pledge that it will not engage in paid prioritization.\u201d\u00a0 He also pressed each company for a specific commitment \u201cnot to engage in any activity that prioritizes affiliated content or services over unaffiliated content or services, helping to ensure that vertical integration does not threaten competition online.\u00a0 Making these pledges will go a long way to ensuring that the Internet as we know it will remain open, vibrant, and competitive.\u201d\u00a0\r\nA copy of the letters to AT&T, Verizon, Time Warner Cable, and Charter Communications can be found online.\r\n\u00a0\r\n# # # # #\n\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\t Press Contact \n\t\t\t\tPress Contact  David Carle: 202-224-3693\n\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\n\t  \n\t\n\t\n\t\n  \n\t\n    \n    \n    \n    \n    \n    \t\n    \t\n\t    \t  \n\t\t    \n\t\t    \tNext Article\n\t\t    \n\t\t    \n\t\t    \tPrevious Article", 1, "2026-03-30T12:14:52Z", "2026-03-30T12:14:52Z"]], "columns": ["url", "title", "date", "year", "month", "party", "chamber", "state", "member_name", "bioguide_id", "domain", "scraper", "source", "date_source", "text", "has_text", "collected_at", "updated_at"], "primary_keys": ["url"], "primary_key_values": ["http://www.leahy.senate.gov/press/judiciary-chairman-leahy-presses-leading-broadband-providers_to-fight-against-internet-fast-lanes--"], "units": {}, "query_ms": 1.419550972059369, "source": "dwillis/congress-press", "source_url": "https://github.com/dwillis/congress-press", "license": "MIT", "license_url": "https://github.com/dwillis/congress-press/blob/main/LICENSE"}