Vermont Weighs Response to Comcast Data Caps
Vermont legislators supported “clawing back” some state broadband funding from Comcast or other ISPs that impose internet data caps on consumers. To have a company impose an “arbitrary” cap to control traffic when Vermont is spending large amounts of money…
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for broadband during COVID-19 “makes me feel like we’re being used,” state Senate Judiciary Committee Chair Dick Sears (D) told a virtual hearing Friday. “Maybe they should pay us back.” Vermont Attorney General T.J. Donovan (D) urged Comcast Thursday to delay overage charges for the caps until 30 days after the state ends its pandemic emergency executive order. The Judiciary Committee voted unanimously to support Donovan's letter. The panel plans to make recommendations to the Finance and General Affairs and Economic Development committees, said Sears, who acknowledged possible jurisdictional issues given federal preemptions on states regulating information services. ISPs shouldn’t benefit from state broadband funding while “digging deeper into their customer base for profit,” said Sen. Phil Baruth (D). He pitched one way Vermont legislators could respond: "If we were to calculate since the pandemic started, how many customers have been added to each company via our expansion of broadband, and then we were to create some kind of fee on each company designed to claw back some of that new revenue, and then we used that for a grant to pay for low-income [people] who are getting hit with this cap.” Sears said the committee could recommend that. Donovan wrote Comcast that he's getting complaints from the cable company's customers. "Consumers say they have been frustrated to learn that their internet services will be subject to new fees and restrictions, even for those consumers who had signed up for service with a long-term contract. This has been particularly unwelcome news for consumers to receive during the ongoing pandemic, when consumers are experiencing financial insecurity and remote work and schooling requirements must be met." Comcast is listening to concerns, said its State Government Relations Director John Sutich. The cable operator gave customers a data usage tool and is trying to be clear and transparent in notices, he said. "We absolutely acknowledge" the internet’s importance during the pandemic, “but there are instances where a few users can drive" large amounts of traffic, he said.