KANSAS CITY, Mo. — There's a piece of proposed federal legislation that may change the kind of results you get when look something up online.
RisingSun Solar is one of companies around the Kansas City area that installs solar panels, now six years and counting.
To keep things running smoothly for the crews that do about eight to 10 jobs a week, owner Keith Murphy depends on Google.
"It's a tool that allows us to do so many things very efficiently," Murphy said.
Recently the tech giant sent Murphy a notice about a piece of proposed legislation making its way thru Congress called the "American Innovation and Choice Only Act."
It's a Senate bill aimed at preventing big tech companies from giving their products special treatment on their own platforms.
"We get a lot of business just through people reading our online reviews," Murphy said.
In the time he's been in business, more than 100 people have commended Murphy's company.
RisingSun Solar has a five-star rating on google reviews, Murphy's biggest worry is that future customers may have hard time finding them if the proposed bill becomes law.
"There are a lot of places you can go get reviews that are typically paid, meaning small businesses actually have to pay to be on their platform to get the reviews," Murphy said. "And, you know, those aren't the best places often times."
Sponsors of the bi-partisan bill say in the long-term, it would actually give consumers more choice.
"We must push for competition and allow for competition right now," Minnesota Sen. Amy Klobuchar said. "When you have dominant platforms with over 90% or 70% of the market, that is not what was envisioned by the founders of our country."
Last month, the senate judiciary committee voted in favor of the bill that's now on the Senate floor.
Similar legislation is in the House of Representatives.
"Any effort to reduce a consumers ability to do their own research on a company isn't good for consumers and it's not good for small businesses," Murphy said.
