Technology

The Democrats' ascendancy on Capitol Hill should bolster forces pushing for "Net neutrality" legislation and an increased number of visas for foreign engineers and programmers.

As the state's high-tech companies enjoy a healthy resurgence, they're finding it hard to hire enough top technical talent. The Democrats, with their more liberal views on immigration, could provide some relief.

Net neutrality would bar Internet providers such as Verizon Communications Inc. and Comcast Corp. from offering two-tiered Internet services and forcing other Internet businesses to pay premium prices to send certain kinds of data at high speed to their customers.

US Representative Edward J. Markey, a Malden Democrat, tried to add a Net neutrality provision to a major telecommunication bill that passed the House earlier this year.

But the Net neutrality fight trapped that bill in the Senate, and it isn't expected to emerge in the lame-duck session.

When the new Congress starts next year, Markey likely will be in a stronger position to promote Net neutrality, perhaps as chairman of the Telecommunications and the Internet Subcommittee.

Art Brodsky, communications director of Public Knowledge, a pro-Net neutrality lobbying group, said incoming House Speaker Nancy Pelosi and John Dingell, the new chairman of the Energy and Commerce Committee, also will be on his side. "You've got a leadership that's totally in favor of Net neutrality," Brodsky said.

Meanwhile, technology companies hope that the presence of more immigrant-friendly leadership in the House will mean an expansion of the H-1b visa program.

US technology companies use these visas to bring thousands of engineers and computer programmers into the country.

The companies say there aren't enough skilled Americans to fill the jobs.

William Archey, president of the electronics industry trade group AeA, said "We are pretty optimistic . . . the Democrats have a tendency, in high-tech issues, to get it."

HIAWATHA BRAY