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To my eye Internet services look like interstate commerce and therefore would be the jurisdiction of the federal government. I'd appreciate it if someone with a
by forapurpose 9y ago
To my eye Internet services look like interstate commerce and therefore would be the jurisdiction of the federal government. I'd appreciate it if someone with a little expertise could explain how the law works in this regard.
- jclulow 9y agoI buy transit from the ISP to my apartment. This is entirely within a local government zone, let alone the state.
- gnicholas 9y agoThere's a famous Supreme Court case [1] in which a law that regulates how much wheat a farmer may keep for himself was determined to affect interstate commerce, and therefore be within the province of federal law. Though this case was cited negatively by the Supreme Court many years later, it is still regularly cited in briefs — including by lawyers on both sides of the recent Obamacare cases. So just because something seems local doesn't mean it couldn't fall within the Commerce Clause powers, as interpreted by the Supreme Court. 1: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wickard_v._Filburn https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wickard_v._Filburn
- forapurpose 9y ago> I buy transit from the ISP to my apartment. I'm not sure that the proper definition of "interstate" is when the consumer crosses state lines to reach the retail location. Is the cellular industry not interstate? An American can buy their phone at a local Verizon store and their phone connects to a local Verizon tower. Also, most Americans' ISPs are headquartered and have facilities, through which their traffic passes, in other states.