FILE - In this Wednesday, Sept. 6, 2017, file photo, New York Attorney General Eric Schneiderman speaks at a news conference in New York. A group of 22 state attorneys general has sued to block the Federal... (Associated Press) 
 
 FILE - In this Wednesday, Sept. 6, 2017, file photo, New York Attorney General Eric Schneiderman speaks at a news conference in New York. A group of 22 state attorneys general has sued to block the Federal Communications Commission’s repeal of net-neutrality rules. Schneiderman, who is leading the suit,... (Associated Press) 
 
 NEW YORK (AP) — The expected wave of litigation against the Federal Communications Commission's repeal of net-neutrality rules has begun. 
 
 A group of attorneys general for 21 states and the District of Columbia sued Tuesday to block the rules. So did Mozilla, the maker of the Firefox browser, public-interest group Free Press and New America's Open Technology Institute. Others may file suit as well, and a major tech-industry lobbying group has said it will support litigation. 
 
 The rules barred companies like AT&T, Comcast and Verizon from interfering with internet traffic and favoring their own sites and apps. FCC Chairman Ajit Pai's push to undo them inspired both street and online protests in defense of the Obama-era rules. 
 
 New York Attorney General Eric Schneiderman, who is leading the suit, said Tuesday that the end of the net neutrality rules would hurt consumers and businesses. 
 
 FCC spokesman Brian Hart declined to comment on the litigation. 
 
 The lawsuits are part of a multi-pronged approach against the net-neutrality repeal. There are efforts by Democrats to undo the repeal in Congress. State lawmakers have also introduced bills to protect net neutrality in their own states. However, the FCC's order bars state laws from contradicting the federal government's approach. The FCC's new rules are not expected to go into effect until later this spring. 
 
 THE COURTS 
 
 Apart from New York, the other attorneys general participating in the lawsuit are from California, Connecticut, Delaware, Hawaii, Illinois, Iowa, Kentucky, Maine, Maryland, Massachusetts, Minnesota, Mississippi, New Mexico, North Carolina, Oregon, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, Vermont, Virginia, Washington and the District of Columbia. 
 
 The New York attorney general says the FCC made "arbitrary and capricious" changes to existing policies and was unjustified in departing from the FCC's long-standing policy of defending net neutrality. 
 
 The legal challenge could face an uphill battle, however. Antitrust attorney David Balto says the courts have generally shown deference to agencies to set regulations as long as they provide adequate explanations. A court would likely judge that the FCC has the authority to class the internet as an "information service" and invalidate the prior rules, just as the Obama-era FCC had the authority to label internet service a telecommunications utility and regulate it more heavily. 
 
 The parties may have to file suit again after the FCC's order is published in the Federal Register. That hasn't happened yet. The different suits may also be consolidated. 
 
 REPEAL IN CONGRESS 
 
 Democrats in the Senate will force a vote on a simple repeal of the FCC's repeal, using the same law, the Congressional Review Act, that Congress used to undo the Obama-era internet privacy rules . The vote probably won't happen for a few months. 
 
 Democrats need a least two Republican votes to pass a repeal in the Senate. Maine's Republican Sen. Susan Collins has already said she'll support it. But the resolution would probably run into difficulties in the House, where Republicans have a much bigger majority. And President Donald Trump seems likely to veto it. The White House has said it supports the FCC's efforts to roll back regulations. 
 
 However, if net neutrality does become a campaign issue with young voters in the 2018 elections, as some Democrats hope, they could use Republicans' "no" votes on restoring net neutrality rules to their advantage. 
 
 STATE BILLS 
 
 The FCC order bars states and cities from imposing rules on broadband providers that contradict the FCC's plan. Lawmakers in a number of states are pursuing net-neutrality bills anyway. 
 
 In New York, a bill would bar the state from contracting with broadband companies that don't follow net-neutrality principles. 
 
 In California, one bill would forbid companies like AT&T, Comcast and Verizon from blocking, limiting or interfering with customers' internet service. Another is similar in its approach to the New York bill, predicating state contracts and local cable franchises to companies following net-neutrality policies. 
 
 State lawmakers have also introduced bills in Missouri, Nebraska, New Jersey, Rhode Island, South Carolina and Washington, according to the National Conference of State Legislatures, which tracks state bills. A New Mexico state senator has said he will propose legislation. ||||| Senate Democrats are hunting for one more Republican vote to prevent the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) from repealing net neutrality rules. 
 
 Senate Minority Leader Charles Schumer Charles (Chuck) Ellis SchumerWhite House, lawmakers signal shutdown will drag on Shutdown is bad for Republicans, an opportunity for Democrats House adjourns without clear path to avert shutdown MORE (D-N.Y.) announced Tuesday that all 49 Democrats have endorsed legislation to preserve the rules. With Sen. Susan Collins Susan Margaret CollinsShutdown looms as Trump, GOP dig in on wall The Memo: Trump reaches to shore up base on border wall On The Money: Latest on shutdown risk | Trump digs in on wall funding | House GOP looks to move .7B for border wall | GOP senators stunned | Stocks plunge amid Washington chaos MORE (Maine) already on board, Democrats need the support of just one more Republican to ensure the legislation is sent to the House. 
 
 The bill, which will be introduced by Sen. Ed Markey Edward (Ed) John MarkeyOvernight Energy: Senators introduce bipartisan carbon tax bill | House climate panel unlikely to have subpoena power | Trump officials share plan to prevent lead poisoning House climate change panel unlikely to have subpoena power GOP Sen. Lamar Alexander won't seek reelection MORE (D-Mass.), would use a legislative tool called the Congressional Review Act (CRA) to roll back the FCC’s vote last month scrapping the 2015 net neutrality rules. The rules have required internet service providers (ISP) to treat all web traffic equally, and supporters say they’re essential to preventing companies such as Comcast and Verizon from abusing their control over internet access. 
 
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 The Democrats plan to use procedural rules under the CRA to force a vote on their bill in the coming months. 
 
 Even though the bill is unlikely to pass the House or be signed by President Trump Donald John TrumpPresident Trump, first lady attend Christmas service at National Cathedral Trump open to visiting Turkey in 2019 but no 'definite' plans, White House says Trump has weighed dismissing Mnuchin: Bloomberg MORE, Democrats see an opportunity to capitalize on the outcry surrounding the FCC repeal and force Republicans to vote on net neutrality ahead of the midterm elections. 
 
 “With full caucus support, it’s clear that Democrats are committed to fighting to keep the internet from becoming the Wild West where ISPs are free to offer premium service to only the wealthiest customers while average consumers are left with far inferior options,” Schumer said in a statement Tuesday. 
 
 He added, “When we force a vote on this bill, Republicans in Congress will — for the first time — have the opportunity to right the administration’s wrong and show the American people whose side they’re on: big ISPs and major corporations or consumers, entrepreneurs, and small business owners.” 
 
 On the House side, Rep. Mike Doyle Michael (Mike) F. DoyleDems to ramp up oversight of Trump tech regulators Twitter chief faces GOP anger over bias at hearing Live coverage: Social media execs face grilling on Capitol Hill MORE (D-Pa.) announced Tuesday that he had lined up 82 co-sponsors for his companion CRA bill, including House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi Nancy Patricia D'Alesandro PelosiTrump’s Fed feud roils markets, alarms Republicans Schumer and Pelosi accuse Trump of plunging country into chaos as markets tank Trump hands out lumps of coal to enemies on Christmas Eve MORE (D-Calif.). But the procedural rules for CRA bills are different in the House; Democrats do not have the power to force a vote by securing co-sponsors. 
 
 That’s left the Senate as the primary venue for the net neutrality fight. 
 
 Supporters of the rules looking for the 51st vote for the CRA bill could have several targets. 
 
 Sen. John Kennedy John Neely KennedyMORE (R-La.), for example, who made headlines last year by bucking the administration on a handful of judicial nominees, said last week that he is undecided on Markey’s bill. 
 
 “There a lot of nuances, and there are very good arguments on both sides,” Kennedy said to reporters, according to the National Journal. “I’m honestly undecided. Right now, to me, it’s a very, very close call.” 
 
 Sen. Dean Heller Dean Arthur HellerProgressive strategist says changing demographics will help Dems House-passed stopgap measure in Senate limbo The Hill's Morning Report — What a shutdown would mean for the government MORE (R-Nev.), who’s seen as one of the most vulnerable Republicans in this year’s midterm election, is another possible target in the net neutrality push. Spokespeople for Kennedy and Heller did not respond to requests for comment. 
 
 Still, Republicans have largely opposed the Obama-era rules as heavy-handed regulation that has stifled investment from broadband companies. They say existing antitrust and consumer protection laws are already sufficient to secure an open internet. 
 
 Democrats and their allies disagree and think Republicans will pay a political price for that stance. 
 
 Fight for the Future, a group that helped rally internet users to protest the FCC vote, has already launched an online scorecard to track members’ positions on the CRA, directing supporters to reach out to their representatives. 
 
 “Net neutrality is going to be an election issue in 2018 and every member of Congress knows it,” Evan Greer, the group’s campaign director, said in a statement. 
 
 “The CRA is steamrolling through the Senate because lawmakers are reading the writing on the wall that it’s the only viable legislation on the table. Cleanly reversing the FCC’s unpopular and illegitimate decision is, on substance, the correct policy move, and the only one that has support from voters,” Greer said. 
 
 It could be months before the net neutrality bill reaches the Senate floor. The FCC’s final order still needs to receive approval from the White House’s Office of Management and Budget and must be published in the Federal Register before Congress can review it. At that point, lawmakers will have 60 legislative days to take up the CRA bills. 
 
 Even if the effort in Congress fails, as expected, the FCC’s repeal order will be facing court challenges for years to come. That will allow Democrats to extend the shelf life of a political battle in which they see themselves on the winning side. 
 
 “Republicans now have a clear choice — be on the right side of history and stand with the American people who support a free and open internet, or hold hands with the special interests who want to control the internet for their own profit,” Markey said in a statement Tuesday. “I urge them to join the majority of Americans, embrace the bipartisanship of net neutrality, and support this resolution.”
– A lawsuit filed Tuesday claims the FCC broke federal law when it voted to repeal net neutrality rules in a move labeled "arbitrary, capricious and an abuse of discretion," Reuters reports. As promised, a lawsuit filed by 21 state attorneys general, all Democrats, argues the FCC will allow internet service providers "to put profits over consumers while controlling what we see, what we do, and what we say online," New York Attorney General Eric T. Schneiderman says, per the New York Times. "Every consumer has a right to access online content without interference or manipulation by their internet service provider," adds California AG Xavier Becerra. Their comments were echoed by nonprofit Mozilla and the Open Technology Institute, which filed separate suits claiming the repeal would increase internet fees for entrepreneurs. Public interest groups Free Press and Public Knowledge also filed motions Tuesday to protect Obama-era rules barring ISPs from throttling traffic, though legal challenges are technically prohibited until the FCC's new rules are entered into the federal registry; that's expected to happen in the near future. In the meantime, Senate Democrats aren't giving up hope of blocking the FCC action. All 49 Democrats, plus Republican Sen. Susan Collins of Maine, have endorsed legislation to prevent the repeal of net neutrality rules, reports the Hill. That means Democrats need one more GOP vote to move the legislation to the House. It's unlikely to pass the House, and it would surely face President Trump's veto even if it did, Reuters notes. Still, Democrats hope their efforts will win favor among young voters ahead of the midterm elections, reports the AP.