• The Communications Act of 1934 was substantially updated in 1996.

• The FCC classified ISPs as "telecommunications services", same as now, until the mid-2000s.

• The Supreme Court ruled in 2005 that the FCC had the authority to classify ISPs as either "telecommunications services" or "information services".[1]

• By 2010, ISPs had begun to violate the consumer protection guidelines the FCC laid out in 2005. The FCC responded with regulations, but ISPs challenged even the most basic provision: no outright blocking of lawful content.

• The DC Circuit ruled the FCC couldn't regulate "information services" that way but suggested the FCC could undo the reclassification.[2] So it did.

• ISPs sued over that too, but the DC Circuit upheld it.[3]

Is that the FCC reinterpreting a 1934 law or a court applying a 2005 precedent?

After that was settled, the Ninth Circuit ruled that the FTC had no authority to regulate common carriers.[4] The FCC published the regulations Congress just overturned two months after that.

Congressional Review Act was used to strike the regulations down, which requires that it be a new federal regulation: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Congressional_Review_Act

The CRA includes this, too, so the FCC can no longer do anything about it without a new law passed by Congress:

Once a rule is thus repealed, the CRA also prohibits the reissuing of the rule in substantially the same form or the issuing of a new rule that is substantially the same, "unless the reissued or new rule is specifically authorized by a law enacted after the date of the joint resolution disapproving the original rule"

[1] https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/National_Cable_%26_Telecommunications_Ass'n_v._Brand_X_Internet_Services

[2] https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Verizon_Communications_Inc._v._FCC_(2014)

[3] https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/United_States_Telecom_Ass'n_v._FCC_(2016)

[4] https://cdn.ca9.uscourts.gov/datastore/opinions/2016/08/29/15-16585.pdf

It was my understanding Democrats screwed up (on purpose) giving the wrong agency power.

I am just curious when the Republican's in power are going to work towards protecting internet privacy. Hit me up here if anyone has seen something taking shape.

Still waiting