Elected officials are put in power by the people. It appears members of the bipartisan leadership group (Sam Graves (R-MO Chair), Rick Larsen (D-WA Ranking Member), Aviation Subcommittee Chair Garret Graves (R-LA), Ranking Member Steve Cohen) don’t care about the traveling public.
They called for its rapid approval as early as this week by the full 65-member committee.
On Friday afternoon, the House Transportation and Infrastructure Committee (T&I) leadership introduced a 773-page bill setting FAA policies, organization, and spending for the next five years, as reported by FlyersRights.org.
This legislation would grant significantly more power to the airline industry and FAA bureaucrats while ignoring passenger interests.
Paul Hudson, president of FlyersRights.org & designated passenger representative to the FAA
The Federal government now has sole power over all aspects of air travel. Despite airlines receiving over $54 billion in federal subsidies, air travel breakdowns, delays, cancellations, and passenger complaints are at record levels.
After two crashes of 737 MAX aircraft due to poor safety regulations and Boeing’s deception, the FAA has lost its reputation as the gold standard for air safety globally.
Accordingly, this legislation is too important to be rammed through Congress on short notice with little debate.”
Nearly all passenger protection and safety provisions were missing from the legislation supported by a coalition of national passenger and consumer protection organizations.
The bill did not address and omitted the following important consumer demands.
- setting minimum seat sizes
- delay compensation
- allowing passengers on canceled flights to travel on other airlines
- requiring ancillary fees to be fair and reasonable
- advance notice by airlines devaluing frequent flyer miles
- accountability for chronically canceled or delayed flights
- conspicuous notices of passenger rights
- enabling state attorneys general and private attorneys to enforce aviation consumer protection laws.
- Also missing was any reform of FAA secrecy policies blocking public oversight of its safety decision-making.
Today passenger rights groups, including FlyersRights.org, the National Consumers League, Consumer Federation of America, Travelers United, US Public Interest Research Group, and Consumer Action, sent an urgent letter to the T&I leadership urging they hold public hearings and allow full debate and recorded votes on amendments that include passenger rights protections.
Click here to view the US House bill.
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