Tennessee Sues FCC Over Internet Law

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Chattanooga, Tennessee is one of those rare cities that offers super-fast Internet to its residents. It wants to sell that service to nearby towns. It even got approval from federal regulators.

But, according to CNN Money,  now Tennessee is suing to stop Chattanooga -- and strengthen the control that cable companies have in the state.

Chattanooga laid down a fiber-optic network that offers speeds of up to 1 gigabit per second for just $70 a month. That's 100 times faster than most current high-speed Internet networks. You could download an entire music album in under six seconds and a feature-length movie in 38 seconds.

Naturally, it got popular. Many living just outside Chattanooga want it too.

But Tennessee state laws, which are supported by the cable industry, would not allow such an expansion.

On February 26, the FCC issued a rule that prohibits states like Tennessee from limiting the expansion of municipal broadband Internet. The FCC said such such laws only strengthened the monopoly power of cable companies.

"Some states have created thickets of red tape designed to limit competition," FCC Chairman Tom Wheeler said at the hearing. "You can't say you're for competition but deny local elected officials the right to offer competitive choices."

But political conservatives portray this as a federal intrusion on state law.
Tennessee's lawsuit, filed Friday, makes the argument that the FCC has "unlawfully inserted itself" in state matters.

An FCC spokesman said the agency expects its decision to be upheld in court.

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