Today, in the United States, a group of Senators will move to force a vote that seeks to restore net neutrality. With the vote due Wednesday 16 May, if you’re in the US, now is a crucial time to call on your Senator to get behind the effort to save net neutrality protections.

The filing of a Congressional Review Act (CRA) resolution triggers a vote in the Senate that would be the first step to overruling a decision taken by the Federal Communication Commission (FCC) in 2017 to roll back net neutrality protections. If the Senate approves the CRA, it will go to the House for a vote, before being sent to the President for approval.

Net neutrality — the principle that internet service providers (ISPs) treat all traffic equally — underpins the internet as we know it and has been crucial for the internet’s success as a tool for free speech, innovation and creativity. Without net neutrality rules, ISPs will be able to block or slow down traffic, and allowed to charge websites to deliver content to users more quickly.

If successful, the CRA will undo the FCC’s repeal, restoring full net neutrality protections throughout the country. While there are efforts to defend net neutrality in individual states — from California to New York — the CRA would reinstate protections at the federal level, ensuring that the internet remains free and open for all Americans.

Make your voice heard

While net neutrality enjoys overwhelming bipartisan support in the US — 86% according to latest poll — the CRA still needs the support of one more Senator to reach the votes required to progress to the House of Representatives.

To get ensure we secure one more vote, we must send a strong message to Senators who have yet to sign up, letting them know that their constituents care about deeply about net neutrality.

If you live in the US, it’s crucial that you take action now, ahead of the vote next week.

Follow simple steps at www.battleforthenet.com to call, email and tweet your representatives.

Our best hope is ensuring our lawmakers understand we will hold them to account on net neutrality. So, contact your representatives, let them know where you stand and ask them to back the CRA. The future of the open internet depends on it.

Visit battleforthenet.com to contact your representatives and stand up for net neutrality.

Read more about the Web Foundation’s efforts to protect net neutrality

• Medium post from our founder, Sir Tim Berners-Lee, calling on the FCC to preserve existing rules (December, 2017)
• Op-Ed in USA Today from Sir Tim on how Americans benefit from net neutrality (November, 2017)
• Web Foundation submission to the FCC, responding to its proposal to undermine net neutrality protections (July, 2017)
• Op-Ed in the Wall Street Journal from Sir Tim on how net neutrality benefits online business and innovation (June 2017)