Congressman Cohen Condemns Proposed Rollback of Consumer Protections for Air Travelers
Canceled-flight refunds, family seating, treatment of wheelchairs among rules targeted for elimination
WASHINGTON – Congressman Steve Cohen (TN-9), who as the Ranking Member of the Aviation Subcommittee authored and successfully worked to enact into law consumer protections for air travelers, today blasted the Trump Administration’s reported consideration of airline industry proposals to dismantle rules safeguarding passengers such as compensation for passengers for lengthy delays or cancellations caused by air carriers. He also criticized a request to the U.S. Department of Transportation by the airline industry group Airlines for America (A4A) to eliminate other major consumer protections for air travelers.
Congressman Cohen made the following statement:
“The Trump Administration’s gift to the airline industry is a direct slap in the face to air travelers. These rules exist because the airlines, left to their own devices, repeatedly failed their customers. We wrote them into law, and the DOT appropriately acted, to restore fairness and accountability, and they should be strengthened — not tossed aside to please industry lobbyists. What A4A has proposed in its request to the Department of Transportation is outrageous. The flying public deserves the reforms we enacted, especially the automatic refunds for canceled or long-delayed flights, the elimination of fees for seating children with their parents, the treatment of mobility devices like wheelchairs, and several other improvements to the flying experience A4A is trying to eliminate. The reporting requirements for on-time performance and mishandled baggage are not an onerous reporting ‘burden,’ but a much-needed improvement in information available to travelers. I encourage everyone now aware of these proposed rollbacks to make their objections clear. Our consumer protection measures should be strengthened, not eliminated. I urge the Department of Transportation to abandon this reckless rollback and to stand with the flying public instead of caving to corporate demands.”
Congressman Cohen and Congresswoman Dina Titus (NV-1) wrote to Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy last month stressing the congressional intent of last year’s Federal Aviation Administration Reauthorization law regarding mobility devices like wheelchairs. See their release and the letter here.
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