A new FCC rule gives internet providers the green light to charge hidden fees
Washington, D.C. – U.S. Senator Ron Wyden today urged the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) to reverse its decision to weaken broadband pricing labeling rules that inform consumers about the types of internet services they are buying before committing to a provider.
“The broadband label framework was designed to work like nutrition labels, giving consumers a clear, consistent way to understand what services they are buying before they commit,” the senators wrote to FCC Chairman Brendan Carr. “The entire purpose of the broadband label is to show consumers the real, total cost of service so that they can make informed choices. Allowing providers to bundle these fees into vague line items recreates exactly the kind of billing opaqueness that Congress sought to end. Families need to see what they are being charged and why.”
These broadband consumer label requirements were unanimously adopted in 2022. Congress gave the FCC explicit instructions in the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act (IIJA) to create these labels showing speeds, costs, and data allowances of internet plans.
This FCC proposal reduces broadband consumer transparency by allowing internet service providers to remove the price listed of active plans in customer accounts, cut off phone support on pricing, and limit labels in various languages.
Wyden has been a longtime advocate in making broadband accessible and affordable. In October 2025, Wyden signed onto a similar letter on the FCC’s vote to advance these changes that would weaken consumer broadband protections. As a result of Wyden’s advocacy to correct inaccuracies in the National Broadband Map, the Department of Commerce under the Biden administration in 2023 announced $689 million to expand access to broadband internet to Oregon’s rural and underserved communities. In August 2025, Wyden and Senator Jeff Merkley, D-Ore., announced more than $2.2 million for rural broadband technical assistance across Oregon.
The letter was led by Senators Adam Schiff, D-Calif., and Senator Ben Ray Luján, D-N.M. In addition to Wyden, the letter was signed by Senators Brian Schatz, D- Hawai’i, Edward J. Markey, D-Mass., Richard Blumenthal, D-Conn., Kirsten Gillibrand, D-N.Y., and Mark Warner, D-Va.
The full text of the letter can be found here.
A web version of this release is here.
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