Sen. Ron Wyden, D-Ore., sought to standardize Internet data caps...

manage network congestion rather than monetize data in ways that undermine online innovation,” Wyden told lawmakers Thursday following the bill’s introduction. “Future innovation will undoubtedly require consumers to use more and more data -- data caps should not impede this innovation and the jobs it creates,” Wyden said. Under the Data Cap Integrity Act, the FCC would require ISPs to inform consumers about the cost, capacity and limits of their data services, among other provisions. ISPs would be required under the legislation to detail to consumers their legal and privacy policies for their data contracts. The bill would prompt the FCC, the National Institute of Standards and Technology and private sector experts to develop standards to measure household data usage, within one year of the bill’s passage. ISPs would then be required to meet such standards in order to implement data caps on their services and give evidence that the provider’s data caps are used to “reasonably limit network congestion without unnecessarily restricting Internet use,” the legislation said. Wyden’s bill would forbid ISPs from providing preferential treatment to data based on the source or the content of the data, like online video or audio content. The legislation would require ISPs to provide consumers with tools to manage their data consumption that permit them to monitor the amount of data uploaded or downloaded via wireline or wireless devices. If enacted, ISPs who fail to fulfill the requirements of the legislation would be liable for unspecified civil penalties, according to the text of the legislation. A Verizon spokesman would not comment other than to say his company does not limit its consumers’ bandwidth use on the FiOS network. Comcast, Time Warner Cable, AT&T, Bright House and Cox Communications did not respond to requests for comment.