The National Grange is deeply concerned about the timing and direction of current efforts in Washington to regulate the Internet, specifically H.R. 5353, recently introduced by Rep. Ed Markey (D-MA). As the nation’s oldest general farm and rural public interest organization, we actively follow and support policies designed to assure a strong and viable Rural America. The proposed Markey legislation would undermine this vital objective. Broadband deployment and access for all Americans, especially rural Americans, is a far more pressing policy objective than asking government regulators to predict, anticipate and ultimately control the future direction of this vital innovation that is creating so many possibilities for our economy and quality of life.

The National Grange joins hundreds of other organizations, thought leaders and economists who believe preemptive regulation of the Internet is a grave mistake for our economy, for rural America and for all consumers. Micro-managing the Internet’s ever-evolving structure and applications could have catastrophic consequences on the deployment of Internet services and applications that are critical to rural America’s future, such as telecommuting, eHealth, online education and agriculture-related advances.

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