California governor Jerry Brown has signed into law the toughest state-level net neutrality law to date, setting the stage for a battle against the federal Justice Department, which is suing the state in an attempt to block the law from taking effect on January 1, 2019.

The stand-off marks a new chapter in the fight over net neutrality, a face-off that has lasted several years and threatens to carry on for several more as the Trump administration joins forces with the telecoms industry to stop a wave of similar state-level protections.

Brown signed the bill on Sunday, largely reintroducing the Obama administration’s 2015 rules on net neutrality, legislation that prohibited broadband providers from blocking or "throttling" internet traffic and the offer of "fast lanes" for companies willing to pay more to reach consumers more quickly than their competitors.

Broadband was also reclassified as a utility, putting it in the same category as the telecoms networks.