The Department of Justice filed a lawsuit against the state of California on Sunday evening after Gov. Jerry Brown singed a new bill into law that enforces net neutrality rules that were abandoned by the Federal Communications Commission last year, Politico reported.
The bill was passed by the California state legislature in August and has been rebuked by the FCC and some companies, like USTelecom, which owns AT&T and Verizon. The new law aims to protect internet safeguards implemented by the Obama administration, which were rolled back by the FCC last year.
“The Justice Department should not have to spend valuable time and resources to file this suit today, but we have a duty to defend the prerogatives of the federal government and protect our Constitutional order,” Attorney General Jeff Sessions said in a statement Sunday. “We will do so with vigor. We are confident that we will prevail in this case —because the facts are on our side.”
