On December 14, 2017, the Federal Communications Commission's (FCC) Republican majority approved Chairman Ajit Pai's plan to repeal Net Neutrality. Net Neutrality is a rule that prohibits internet service providers such as AT&T, Comcast, and Verizon from monitoring the websites you use, slowing down, or blocking content on your internet. This rule was implemented during the Obama Administration and established internet service providers (ISP) as common carriers- it formed the basis of how internet functions by preserving every individual's right to communicate freely online.

Democratic lawmakers are currently hoping to reverse the commission's actions to overturn the rule by using the Congressional Review Act. The Congressional Review Act created ways for Congress to disapprove a broad range of federal agency regulations via joint resolution. Pai's repeal attracted very strong public opposition.

Pai believes that the new rules will encourage more investment and innovation by internet service providers. Others, such as Republican state representative Norma Smith, believe Net Neutrality was an important safeguard for small businesses that might not have the means to pay internet service companies for access in order to reach customers. A free internet is thus necessary in order to foster competitive growth and keep the barriers to entry low.

© Federal Communications Commission / Wikimedia Commons

When this issue first became national news, some of America's biggest tech companies kept a relatively low profile during public protests over the issue, Facebook (FB  ) and Google (GOOGL  ) in particular. However, these tech giants, including Netflix and several others have now decided to join and help restore net neutrality. The Internet Association, a leading lobbying organization for Amazon (AMZN  ), Facebook, Google, Netflix (NFLX  ), Twitter (TWTR  ), and other tech giants, has announced their plan to join a lawsuit as an intervening party, helping to challenge Ajit Pai's efforts in repealing the Net Neutrality regulations.

It might seem like Net Neutrality is a given for the internet; however, it was only formally introduced about two years ago. One immediate effect of the repeal of Net Neutrality is that the ISP will be able to split the net into packages and consumers will no longer be able to pay one price to access any site that they want. Therefore, the companies that pay the most to the ISP will have the most say in how the internet operates.

There are others who argue that Net Neutrality gives the government more control in monitoring the broadband connections of telecom companies. Additionally, in the debate against Net Neutrality, many say that it will disrupt growth and investments. Forner FCC Chairman, Michael Powell, agrees with this argument, as he believes that treating the internet as a utility would "fracture confidence that our national broadband policy rests squarely on a light regulatory foundation." Advocates of abolishing Net Neutrality hope it would spur competition which would benefit consumers by encouraging providers to develop new and better services.

Ultimately, the debate surrounding Net Neutrality will be crucial in the upcoming months as the issue will affect every user of the Internet.