Stories
Slash Boxes
Comments

SoylentNews is people

posted by martyb on Monday July 16 2018, @05:03AM   Printer-friendly
from the equal-justice-under-the-law...for-those-who-have-money dept.

Submitted via IRC for Fnord666

FCC plans to stop reviewing informal complaints—filing a formal one costs $225.

Ajit Pai's Federal Communications Commission is proposing that it stop reviewing the vast majority of consumer complaints about telecom companies. Going forward, consumers harmed by broadband, TV, and phone companies would have to pay $225 in order to get an FCC review of their complaints.

The FCC accepts two types of complaints: informal ones and formal ones. It costs nothing to file an informal complaint and $225 to file a formal one; given that, consumers almost always file informal complaints. Besides the filing fee, formal complaints kick off a court-like proceeding in which the parties appear before the FCC and file numerous documents to address legal issues. It isn't an easy process for consumers to go through.

[...] Chairman Pai's proposal to change the informal complaint procedure comes in a larger proposal about formal complaints; the change to informal complaints is explained in a footnote. "We delete the phrase 'and the Commission's disposition' from the last sentence of that rule because the Commission's practice is not to dispose of informal complaints on substantive grounds," the footnote says.

Customers will still be able to submit informal complaints, and telecom providers will still be required to respond to them within 30 days. But consumers who don't get what they want from the ISP will have to file a formal complaint and pay the $225 in order to get the FCC to take any action.

Even if the telecom provider fails to reply to an informal complaint, the only recourse would be filing a formal one. "[T]he Commission will notify the complainant that if the complainant is not satisfied by the carrier's response, or if the carrier has failed to submit a response by the due date, the complainant may file a formal complaint," the proposed version of the FCC complaint rule says. By contrast, the current version of the rule says that "the Commission will contact the complainant regarding its review and disposition of the matters raised. If the complainant is not satisfied by the carrier's response and the Commission's disposition, it may file a formal complaint."

Democrats from the FCC and Congress say the change will make it more difficult (and expensive) for consumers to get complaints resolved. "This is bonkers. It's unacceptable," FCC Commissioner Jessica Rosenworcel said in a statement to Ars.

Source: https://arstechnica.com/tech-policy/2018/07/ajit-pais-fcc-wants-to-stop-reviewing-your-complaints-unless-you-pay-225/

But, see also: https://www.washingtonpost.com/technology/2018/07/11/no-fcc-is-not-forcing-consumers-pay-file-complaints/.


Original Submission

 
This discussion has been archived. No new comments can be posted.
Display Options Threshold/Breakthrough Mark All as Read Mark All as Unread
The Fine Print: The following comments are owned by whoever posted them. We are not responsible for them in any way.
  • (Score: 1, Insightful) by Anonymous Coward on Monday July 16 2018, @05:27PM (4 children)

    by Anonymous Coward on Monday July 16 2018, @05:27PM (#707952)

    Just FYI this is one of your fascist-lite posts. It is hard for you to realize since in so many ways you are pro-freedom and anti-corruption, but I think the fascist in all of us stems from anger and desire for vengeance. It then becomes the slippery slope.

    Depriving someone of freedom and their property (restitution) is enough. Physical assault is unnecessary and often counter productive.

    On a side note, I sure hope you believe that water boarding is torture. If not, then do your homework and then realize how easily you accept things you staunchly say you don't.

    Starting Score:    0  points
    Moderation   +1  
       Insightful=1, Total=1
    Extra 'Insightful' Modifier   0  

    Total Score:   1  
  • (Score: 3, Interesting) by Runaway1956 on Monday July 16 2018, @06:57PM (3 children)

    by Runaway1956 (2926) Subscriber Badge on Monday July 16 2018, @06:57PM (#708014) Journal

    I really don't know what reality you live in. There is nothing "fascist" about seeking justice. Physical assault? Yeah, that's some bad stuff. But, you tell me which is more barbaric, and more torturous:

    Man commits a petty crime, he is sentenced to ten lashes with a cane, or maybe a cat o' nine. He takes his lashes, lays around the house for a couple days being doctored, then gets his ass to work to pay off the fines and restitution. When the money is paid off, he is a free man.

    Same man commits a petty crime in today's America, he gets a slap on the fingers - twice, ten times, twenty times. Again and again, he's sent to lounge in the county jail, for periods of a week, up to six months. Finally the judge decides the guy is incorrigible, and sends him to prison for a decade. It takes 5 to 10 years of molly-coddling the average wannabe gangsta, before the judge hammers him. Now the young idiot has anywhere between 10 and 20 years invested in his life of crime - all because no one could convince him that a life of crime would kill him.

    Had the first judge to address this young man CONVINCED HIM that a life of crime can and will kill a man, the kid could have learned a skill, and started a meaningful career. Instead, people with your attitude and/or opinion simply scolded the kid for a couple years, then talked sternly, then finally locked him up for a significant portion of his life.

    Whether on the giving or the recieving end, I'll opt for a public whipping on the town square, thank you very much. Prison is very close to the most barbaric thing you can do to the bad boys.

    • (Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Tuesday July 17 2018, @02:53PM (2 children)

      by Anonymous Coward on Tuesday July 17 2018, @02:53PM (#708342)
      You didn't happen to read Robert Heinlein during your formative years, did you?
      • (Score: 2) by Runaway1956 on Tuesday July 17 2018, @03:17PM (1 child)

        by Runaway1956 (2926) Subscriber Badge on Tuesday July 17 2018, @03:17PM (#708358) Journal

        Define "formative years", please. I'm 62 years old, and I'm still learning. I realize that is not fashionable - most people put in 8 to 12 years of "public education", and never learn another (legal) thing in their lives.

        • (Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Tuesday July 17 2018, @07:25PM

          by Anonymous Coward on Tuesday July 17 2018, @07:25PM (#708475)

          So a Big Fat Yes?

          Heinlein had a lot of great ideas, but the dude was a total misogynist pretending to be a feminist. Ditto for benevolent dictatorships. I give him a bit of a pass due to the generation he was raised in, taking that into account he was quite progressive.

          As for being fascist, per wikipedia "Fascism is a form of radical authoritarian ultranationalism, characterized by dictatorial power, forcible suppression of opposition and control of industry and commerce."

          Besides, I said fascist-lite. You are pro-freedom in many ways but apparently you can't comprehend that you might have aspects that are anything else. Typical human cluelessness, totally a bipartisan issue lol. You quite frequently regress back to your military training / brainwashing and make me go from "Runaway is conservative but not too crazy" to "wait WTF? Really?" Take or leave the feedback, but it would do you good to keep that in mind. Maybe one day you'll see your behavior and kinda pop out of your usual mindset and say "WTF did I just say? Why??"