FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE:​ Friday, June 22, 2018

CONTACT:​ ​Jackie.Koenig@asm.ca.gov​, (916) 502-7674

Assemblymember Miguel Santiago Issues Statement on Net Neutrality

(Los Angeles) - This morning, Assemblymember Miguel Santiago, Chair of the

Assembly Committee on Communications and Conveyance, issued the following
statement on net neutrality in California:

"Net neutrality lives. It really does.

Earlier this week, amidst some highly unusual moves, my Committee, the Assembly
Committee on Communications and Conveyance, made the responsible decision to
advance proposed net neutrality protections for California so that we can continue a
serious policy conversation.

Senator Scott Wiener (D-San Francisco) has authored SB 822. It was an incredibly
progressive measure with many very valid policy suggestions that should (and now will
be) discussed.

I laud the Senator's passion, his drive, and the integrity of his work. As Chair of the
Committee, I wanted to engage in a serious policy conversation and deliver a bill that
could withstand legal challenges from the telecommunications industry – an industry
that sued to block implementation of the 2015 FCC Order implemented under President
​
Obama; ​most definitely an industry that will sue to block implementation of landmark net
neutrality protections in California.

The clock kept ticking but we ran out of time, the author and I simply could not come to
a resolution with the same goal of getting a strong progressive net neutrality bill. We
worked till the very end. And Senator Wiener was blunt about the fact that he wanted
his bill passed and that the committee amendments were not acceptable to him. And, I
didn’t want him to drop the bill and walk away from it. I admire his convictions.

If that happened, Californians would end up with​ ​no net neutrality protections in the face
of President Trump taking actions to roll back our federal regulations.

I simply COULD NOT allow that to happen. The democratic process exists for experts,
advocates and stakeholders on all sides of the issues to weigh in at multiple stages so
that everyone can have their voices heard. And now we can continue to engage in that
work because we met the legislative deadlines.

I was not appointed by the Speaker of the State Assembly to be a committee chair to
simply rubber stamp measures that come over to us from the Senate. Frankly, I was
not elected​ by my constituents to rubber stamp ​anything regardless of the proponents or
opponents attached to an issue. My job as Chair is to ensure that strong policy
proposals benefit ​all of California, that those policy proposals have the ability to survive
an Assembly Floor vote, that they will be signed into law by the Governor, and that they
will withstand legal challenge.

As the clock ticked, my Committee proposed amendments to SB 822 that consist of the
FCC regulation as implemented in 2015 which would make SB 822 the nation’s
strongest net neutrality legislation. The author assured me beforehand that he would
not accept them. Typically, committee amendments are dispensed with at the
beginning of bill presentations. Knowing he would not accept ours, my committee took
action to insert amendments without his consent to keep the bill moving.

My committee moved the bill forward. By doing this, net neutrality remains alive in
California where​ it will continue to be discussed, debated, ​and improved so that it can
have the benefit of added policy discussions in the Assembly Privacy Committee, the
Assembly Appropriations Committee, and on the Assembly Floor — all places where
input and changes may still occur.

All through this time, the flash messaging on this measure has been easy. It’s
sensational, and anger-inducing. “He gutted the bill!” “SB 822 was eviscerated!”
“Santiago killed net neutrality!” But none of those things are true. That level of rhetoric
has created a firestorm. I have received threats and my wife has been harassed. My
personal family pictures have been stolen from my social media platforms and used to
create memes. Really? Using pictures of my kids? This is a new low. Progressives don’t
behave that way. We expect this type of disrespect, fake news, and insults from Trump
-- ​not those who support dignity and progressive values.

Public policy is often messy. It is complicated. It involves compromise and working

through conflict. In the 36 hours since Wednesday’s hearing, Senator Wiener and I have
spoken several times and met. We have hugged, laughed, and had frank
conversations. He has pledged to keep moving his bill forward and I have pledged, as
Chair of the Committee responsible for this policy area, that I will continue the policy
conversation on SB 822 to make it a strong bill that is truly legally defensible and will
ensure that Californians have the best shot at net neutrality protections. We have not
mended all of our fences, but we will work hard to do so. Because that is the
democratic process.

Am I happy about the legislative maneuverings we had to take yesterday? No! And I
have expressed that to Senator Wiener. In no way do I, nor any of my legislative
colleagues envision policy being created in this manner.

But I stand by my actions and the fact that today, we still have a net neutrality bill to
keep working on. I very much look forward to working with Senator Wiener and my
colleagues as we CONTINUE to work to implement the strongest net neutrality
protections in the nation.

I hope that everyone will keep participating in that process, in a dignified, respectful, and
peaceful manner. TOGETHER we make great things happen in California where we
continue leading the resistance against Trump. There is a lot of work ahead of us."

SB 822 is next scheduled for a hearing in the Assembly Committee on Privacy and
Consumer Protection on Tuesday, June 26th.

Assemblymember Miguel Santiago is the Chair of the Assembly’s Communications and

Conveyance Committee. He represents the 53rd District composed of the cities of Los
Angeles, Huntington Park, and Vernon.