A U.S. House of Representatives subcommittee has voted to approve a bill that would make it official U.S. policy to promote an Internet “free from government control,” with promises that the Republican majority would work with critics of the bill’s wording.

The House Energy and Commerce Committee‘s communications subcommittee approved the Internet freedom bill, an attempt to discourage other countries from advocating for control of the Internet by the United Nations’ International Telecommunication Union and other international agencies.

Some trade groups and subcommittee Democrats had raised concerns that the bill would allow telecom carriers to mount new challenges to the U.S. Federal Communications Commission and prevent law enforcement agencies from prosecuting cybercriminals.

But Representative Greg Walden, an Oregon Republican and subcommittee chairman, said he didn’t intend for the bill to address domestic Internet policy. Although Walden is opposed to the FCC‘s net neutrality rules, he said a congressional policy statement cannot force an agency to change its rules.

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