With his exit from the Federal Communications Commission rapidly approaching, outgoing Republican agency Chairman Ajit Pai said he will not move forward on a review of a liability shield for online platforms.

In a recent interview on C-SPAN's "The Communicators," Pai said there is "simply not sufficient time to complete the administrative steps necessary in order to resolve the rulemaking" before his planned Jan. 20 departure from the commission.

"Given that reality, I do not believe it's appropriate to move forward," Pai said.

The decision marks a reversal for Pai, who had said in October 2020 that he planned to move forward with a rulemaking to clarify the meaning of Section 230 of the Communications Decency Act, which protects internet platforms such as Facebook Inc., Google LLC and Twitter Inc. from civil and criminal liability for content created and posted by users. The law also enables online platforms to moderate content posted on their sites, so long as those efforts are taken in good faith.

President Donald Trump in May 2020 signed an executive order directing the Commerce Department to file a petition for rulemaking with the FCC, asking the agency to review Section 230 and propose regulations to clarify the scope of immunity. It also requested that the agency clarify conditions where restricting access to material is not done in good faith.

Although the FCC will not move forward on the petition, Pai said he believes there is "a bipartisan consensus" in Congress that Section 230 should be changed or updated. In terms of specific changes, he said, "I personally would think about it more carefully in terms of the immunity provision, which under the law protects 'Good Samaritan' blocking and screening of offensive material."

"But those are the kinds of things that I think the next administration and Congress will think about very carefully," Pai said.