Is there a way for the FCC to apply Title II regulations to the Internet without embarrassing itself? Yes, but it would require a change in direction. “Title II” is the section of the Communications Act that was intended to regulate monopoly telephone companies as public utilities. Its roots go far back in history, but an effective starting place for understanding Title II is an 1876 Supreme Court case, Munn v. Illinois. The case involved grain elevators that the court found were situated uniquely between a river harbor and railroad tracks, giving the elevators monopoly control over grain movements from farmers in certain Midwestern states to markets on the East coast. The elevators extracted economic rent to such an extent that they seriously hindered the agricultural economies in the affected areas.

Read “Applying Title II without embarrassment” on AEI.