The FCC net neutrality hearing was briefly evacuated so police dogs could search the room 'on advice of security'

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December 14, 2017 6:17 PM

Canine units were brought into the meeting room where the FCC was holding its vote on net neutrality.

Police briefly evacuated the public and commissioners from an FCC hearing on net neutrality on Thursday, shortly before a contentious vote to repeal open internet rules was due to occur.

FCC Chairman Ajit Pai, who was giving his closing remarks, abruptly stopped speaking and announced that there would be a "brief recess on advice for security."

Police units with canine units were soon brought into the meeting room after it was evacuated. While the official web broadcast of the hearing switched to an image of the FCC logo, a Washington Post web camera in the romm continued to broadcast video of the scene.

After roughly 10 minutes the public was allowed back in to the hearing.

A spokesperson for the Department of Homeland Security's Federal Protective Service provided the following statement to Business Insider:

The effort to repeal net neutrality has been highly controversial, with critics charging that it will leave consumers and web startups at the mercy of the big telecommunications companies. The 2015 rule on net neutrality classified high speed internet service under Title II of the Communications Act, the same classification given to utlities such as telephone lines.

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