Democrats to Revive a Bill That Will Regulate Airline Fees for Bags and Seats

Democrats in Congress are looking to revive a legislation that will regulate airline fees. These are the fees that passengers have to pay for checking a bag, changing a flight, or picking a seat.

Senator Ed Markey reintroduced the Forbidding Airlines from Imposing Ridiculous (FAIR) Fees Act that will allow the transportation department to better regulate additional airline costs.

Markey said that “Does it really cost an airline $100 more to add one additional suit bag? Of course not”.

Legislation to Regulate Airline Fees

The legislation aims to require airlines to have fees that are “reasonable and proportional” to the airline’s cost in providing the service. Plus, the legislation also wants airlines to let children under 14 to sit with family members without additional charge.

One of the bill’s supporters Senator Richard Blumenthal accused airlines of “taking fees and charges to stuff that costs them nothing”. He also called it “robbery in the skies”.

For Blumenthal, there is “no economic justification” for the additional fees. He added, “And frankly, there’s no moral justification”.

Additional Charges Keep Fares Low?

On the other hand, airlines say that these additional charges kept fares lower for people who don’t want the additional services.

Carter Yang, a spokesperson for Airlines for America, defended the airlines. He explained that carriers “offer robust variety of air-travel options, giving passengers the ability to choose the services that best fit their individual needs and preferences”.

This isn’t the first attempt by lawmakers to regulate additional airline charges. Similar bills already failed in congress. However, most US airlines decided to drop ticket-change fees during the pandemic. In May, American Airlines also waived oversized bag fees for sports and music equipment.

Normally, changing or canceling a domestic flight would’ve cost up to $200. But with the weak demand during the start of the pandemic, this made consumers more reluctant to book a flight. Unfortunately, charges that cover bag check-in and seat selection are still present in most airlines.

In 2019, US airlines collected $5.8 billion from bag fees alone. And by 2020, the industry collected $2.8 billion.