WASHINGTON, July 6 — A 2022 federal rule requiring internet service providers to include mandatory recurring fees in advertised prices has been repealed.
The Federal Communications Commission rule, which took effect in 2022, forced ISPs to bundle charges like administrative surcharges, network access fees, and regulatory recovery fees into the monthly price displayed to consumers. The intent was straightforward: let shoppers compare the true cost of broadband plans across providers without hidden add-ons.
The repeal eliminates that requirement entirely.
According to the record, the 2022 rule did not apply to taxes, government-mandated Universal Service Fund contributions, or one-time installation fees. Those could still be listed separately. What changed was the treatment of the recurring, often vaguely named fees that had long padded advertised prices.
Now, ISPs can again list a base price and add those fees later in the checkout process.
The Universal Service Fund, created by the Telecommunications Act of 1996, was not directly affected by either the rule or its repeal. The USF funds rural and low-income connectivity and is collected as a percentage of interstate revenue. It remains a separate line item.
Consumer advocates had argued the 2022 rule provided essential transparency in a market where advertised prices often bore little resemblance to monthly bills. The record shows the rule was designed to let consumers make apples-to-apples comparisons.
On the timeline, the repeal represents a return to the pre-2022 status quo. Industry groups had long opposed the rule, arguing it forced carriers to restructure pricing in ways that obscured legitimate cost recovery mechanisms.
The practical effect for consumers is a return to the familiar experience of seeing one price in an advertisement and a higher one on the bill.
Sources familiar with the regulatory process note the repeal does not address the broader question of whether the fees themselves are justified. It simply removes the requirement that they be disclosed upfront in the advertised price.
What comes next is unclear. The decision returns pricing discretion to individual providers. Some may maintain transparent pricing as a competitive differentiator. Others are expected to revert to the prior model.
For now, the burden of comparison shopping falls back on the consumer.
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