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[Congressional Bills 111th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[S. 3110 Introduced in Senate (IS)]

111th CONGRESS
  2d Session
                                S. 3110

To improve consumer protection for purchasers of broadband services by 
requiring consistent use of broadband service terminology by providers, 
   requiring clear and conspicuous disclosure to consumers about the 
 actual broadband speed that may reasonably be expected, and for other 
                               purposes.

_______________________________________________________________________

                   IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES

                             March 15, 2010

Ms. Klobuchar (for herself, Mrs. Gillibrand, and Mr. Begich) introduced 
the following bill; which was read twice and referred to the Committee 
                on Commerce, Science, and Transportation

_______________________________________________________________________

                                 A BILL

 
To improve consumer protection for purchasers of broadband services by 
requiring consistent use of broadband service terminology by providers, 
   requiring clear and conspicuous disclosure to consumers about the 
 actual broadband speed that may reasonably be expected, and for other 
                               purposes.

    Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the 
United States of America in Congress assembled,

SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.

    This Act may be cited as the ``Broadband Service Consumer 
Protection Act''.

SEC. 2. FINDINGS.

    The Congress finds that--
            (1) the rapid growth and future expansion of broadband 
        services affects an increasingly large segment of the economy 
        and millions of consumers; and
            (2) the lack of clear, consistent, and easily understood 
        industry-wide standards and terminology and the use of ``up 
        to'' representations of broadband speed have hampered the 
        ability of consumers--
                    (A) to make meaningful comparisons of competing 
                plans and providers;
                    (B) to make informed decisions about the purchase 
                of broadband services; and
                    (C) to determine whether they are receiving the 
                level of broadband service for which they are paying.

SEC. 3. FEDERAL COMMUNICATIONS COMMISSION REGULATIONS.

    (a) In General.--Within 180 days after the date of enactment of 
this Act, the Federal Communications Commission shall initiate a 
rulemaking proceeding--
            (1) to assist consumers, before they purchase broadband 
        service from a provider, in making realistic assumptions about 
        the actual speeds that may reasonably be expected and how those 
        assumptions may be affected by the hardware used by the 
        consumer to connect to the Internet, peak service periods, and 
        other factors; and
            (2) to assist consumers, after they purchase broadband 
        service from a provider, in monitoring their usage and 
        determining whether they are getting the level of broadband 
        service for which they are paying.
    (b) Terminology.--In the regulations prescribed under subsection 
(a), the Commission shall--
            (1) establish standard definitions for terms commonly used 
        in the advertising and marketing of broadband service; and
            (2) require that whenever terms for which the Commission 
        has established a standard definition are used in such 
        advertising and marketing, the terms are used in a manner that 
        is consistent with those definitions.
    (c) Measurement Standards.--In the regulations prescribed under 
subsection (a), the Commission, in coordination with such other Federal 
agencies as the Commission finds appropriate, shall establish, and 
revise from time to time as necessary, technical standards for 
quantifying broadband service measures of performance and other 
features, particularly with respect to terms defined in the regulations 
prescribed under subsection (b), and require that broadband service 
providers apply those standards with respect to measures of performance 
and other features of the broadband service provided.
    (d) Pre-Purchase Disclosure.--In the regulations prescribed under 
subsection (a), the Commission shall require, at a minimum, that any 
person selling, or offering for sale, broadband service to the public 
disclose the actual speeds of the broadband service that can reasonably 
be expected from the broadband service provider in a clear and 
conspicuous manner--
            (1) in advertising or marketing materials associated with 
        the sale, or offering for sale, of the service;
            (2) in the service contract and other material associated 
        with the purchase of the service; and
            (3) at the point of sale, whether a physical location or on 
        a website.
    (e) Billing.--In the regulations prescribed under subsection (a), 
the Commission shall require that--
            (1) any invoice or periodic statement of account provided 
        to a consumer by a broadband service provider include a 
        description or analysis of the service provided in such detail, 
        and covering such parameters of usage, for the period covered 
        by the invoice or statement as the Federal Communications 
        Commission determines practicable; and
            (2) the description or analysis be provided in an easily 
        understood, clear and conspicuous, format.

SEC. 4. NO PREEMPTION OF STATE LAW.

    Nothing in this Act, or any regulation prescribed under this Act, 
shall be construed to preempt the laws of any State or local 
government.
                                 <all>
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