House Energy & Commerce Committee Lawmakers Send Letter About Internet Price Increases, Data Caps During COVID-19 Pandemic
January 12, 2021
On Monday, Rep. Frank Pallone, Jr. (D-N.J.), House Energy and Commerce Committee Chairman, Rep. Mike Doyle (D-Penn.), Communications and Technology Subcommittee Chairman, and Rep. Jerry McNerney (D-Calif.) announced that they sent letters to nine internet service providers (ISPs) to question their moves to raise prices and enact data caps during the COVID-19 pandemic.
The lawmakers noted that after Energy and Commerce Committee members wrote to these ISPs in March about the importance for families to have reliable and affordable broadband during the COVID-19 pandemic, almost all of the ISPs announced plans to introduce or expand efforts for affordable services, such as “free months of service, opening of Wi-Fi hotspots, and the waiver of data caps” and their voluntary Keep Americans Connected pledge, led by the Federal Communications Comm
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THE TOPLINE: An active-duty U.S. soldier died last week from COVID-19, the Army confirmed Tuesday, marking the military’s second active-duty death and 14th death overall during the pandemic.
Sgt. Setariki Korovakaturaga, a 43-year-old soldier assigned to the 44th Expeditionary Signal Battalion, 2nd Theater Signal Brigade in Baumholder, Germany, died last Wednesday while en route to the hospital, U.S. Army Europe and Africa said in a news release.