In exchange for a stay of the proceedings in both United States v. California and American Cable Association v. Becerra, California has agreed not to enforce its new net neutrality law, SB 822, pending the resolution of Mozilla Corp. v. FCC, the lawsuit challenging the FCC’s Restoring Internet Freedom Order (“Order”). The Order had repealed Obama-era net neutrality rules. SB 822, which we previously discussed here, was scheduled to go into effect on January 1, 2019, and contains the most stringent net neutrality requirements of any state. When the law was passed on September 30, the U.S. Department of Justice immediately sued California, arguing it was preempted by the FCC’s Order.
In the stipulation, the parties established that California will not enforce SB 822 until the D.C. Circuit issues an opinion in Mozilla, or any final decision is issued by the U.S. Supreme Court. As part of the court filing, the United States also agreed to withdraw its motion for a preliminary injunction in its action seeking to invalidate SB 822.
Oral argument in the challenge to the Restoring Internet Freedom Order is scheduled for February 1, 2019.