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With federal regulators bringing the age of “net neutrality” to an end, Illinois lawmakers are trying to preserve the practice within the state.

House Bill 4819 would require Illinois Internet providers to maintain net neutrality and not limit access to websites based on ideology or “paid prioritization.”

Companies offering Internet in Illinois would also be required to publicly disclose practices that could violate the principle of net neutrality.

The bill is here.

* Meanwhile…

Illinois’ divorce laws could be up for debate next week when lawmakers are scheduled to hear a bill supporters say would throw out the existing system of parenting time.

A number of states are either considering or enacting divorce laws that would move away from one-parent guardianship to a kind of co-parenting model with more flexibility. Kentucky enacted a law last year allowing a court to give both parents equal footing during the divorce proceedings. Supporters of equal parenting laws say the flexibility creates a better opportunity for both parents to be present in a child’s life.

State Rep. Lashawn Ford, D-Chicago, is the sponsor of a bipartisan bill scheduled for a hearing when lawmakers return to Springfield next week that would create a co-parenting model in Illinois’ divorce proceedings. His bill changes divorce law to recognize that “the involvement of each parent for equal time is presumptively in the children’s best interests.”

Ford said the state’s existing laws that favor one parent over another don’t have the child’s best interests at heart.

* Press release…

Today, patient advocates will testify in the Illinois House Insurance Health & Life Committee in support of House Bill 4146. This legislation would protect commercially insured residents from mid-year prescription drug coverage changes, commonly referred to as “non-medical switching.” Right now, nothing prohibits commercial health insurers in Illinois from making prescription coverage changes mid-year, even while consumers and families are essentially locked into their health plans. The bill’s chief sponsor, Rep. Laura Fine, is the committee’s chairperson.

posted by Rich Miller
Monday, Apr 9, 18 @ 2:40 pm

Comments

Happy to see that the legislature is tackling net neutrality. This is a great approach to fixing a problem created by Washington

Comment by Suburban Dad Monday, Apr 9, 18 @ 2:57 pm
Not sure that states can individually regulate the internet, given likely arguments that the FCC structure preempts such action

Comment by Put the fun in unfunded Monday, Apr 9, 18 @ 3:21 pm
“Net Neutrality” fascinates me. Everyone has been convinced that they should be “for” it somehow but I sense most people don’t know what Net Neutrality is or what it is that the internet companies are doing to warrant legislation. I guess it polls well. I agree with “Put the fun” who commented “not sure that states can individually regulate the internet”.

Comment by Colin O'Scopy Monday, Apr 9, 18 @ 3:27 pm
===I sense most people don’t know what Net Neutrality is===

I do and I fully support it and cannot for the life of me understand why people have bought into the mega corporate spin.

Comment by Rich Miller Monday, Apr 9, 18 @ 3:30 pm
Net Neutrality is like toilet paper; you just don’t think much about it until you reach over and see that it’s gone.

Comment by Dome Gnome Monday, Apr 9, 18 @ 3:59 pm
=Ford said the state’s existing laws that favor one parent over another don’t have the child’s best interests at heart.=

100% agree

Comment by m Monday, Apr 9, 18 @ 4:11 pm
A sibling and an exIL work really hard at making sure their kids get the benefit of two parents even though they’re no longer together. Each of them have an apartment in the same building, so the kids can just move up/down a couple of floors instead of having to be ferried across town or to a different one. They’ve figured out roughly how many hours every week each child is awake and not in school and divide those up accordingly. I’m really impressed with both of them for working this out in the best interests of the children. State law should make this sort of arrangement easier for everyone.

Comment by Anonymous Monday, Apr 9, 18 @ 4:16 pm
All three are excellent bills.

Comment by Barrington Monday, Apr 9, 18 @ 5:27 pm
It will certainly be fun to watch the FCC argue that states can’t try to regulate the internet after the FCC said that it was effectively abdicating regulating the internet themselves. I am having a hard time believing any agency could have it both ways like that.

It is a weird partisan hill to die on in which you are defending the practice of the ever popular cable companies of the world to effectively charge their customers more to use the services that they are already paying for…

Comment by benniefly2 Tuesday, Apr 10, 18 @ 9:07 am