Broadband Access Equity Rule Vacated in Appeals Court Ruling (1)

The Federal Communications Commission exceeded its authority by imposing liability for unintentional discrimination in broadband access on a wide variety of entities not normally regulated by the agency, a federal appeals court said Wednesday.

The US Court of Appeals for the Eighth Circuit vacated and set aside a “disparate impact” rule implementing the Digital Equity Act of 2021 by exposing broadband providers and others to liability for maintaining facially neutral policies, practices, or actions taken for nondiscriminatory reasons that disproportionately affect a protected group. The act requires broadband service providers to prevent discrimination based on income level, race, ethnicity, color, ...