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As the U.S. prepares to enter the height of the holiday travel season, several Democrats in Congress are attempting to give new life to legislation to regulate airline fees one senator called "robbery in the skies," for checking bags, changing flights, or picking specific seats for a family to sit together.
The Forbidding Airlines from Imposing Ridiculous (FAIR) Fees Act, reintroduced by Massachusetts Sen. Ed Markey, would allow the Transportation Department to regulate the fees, and require them to be "reasonable and proportional" to the cost imposed on the airline to provide the service.
"Does it really cost an airline $100 more to add one additional suit bag? Of course not," Markey said.
Another senator supporting the reintroduction of the bill, Richard Blumenthal of Connecticut, called the fees "robbery in the skies — taking fees and charges for stuff that costs them nothing," adding the airlines can collectively rob Americans because no one has ever stopped them, and this legislation is intended to do so.
"No economic justification for it. And frankly there's no moral justification," Blumenthal said.
Markey said airlines made about $110 billion in revenue in 2019, compared to about $22 billion in 2010, according to WWLP News.
Similar bills have unsuccessfully been introduced into Congress in the past.
The bill would also require airlines to eliminate fees for allowing children under the age of 14 to sit with family.
One of the biggest concerns for the legislators is bag checking fees, which start around $30 on average, and brought airlines $5.8 billion in 2019, down to $2.8 billion in 2020 due to the pandemic restricting travel, according to data from the Bureau of Transportation Statistics.
Airlines say fees have kept fares lower for people who don't want the services that are covered by the fees.
Airlines "offer a robust variety of air-travel options, giving passengers the ability to choose the services that best fit their individual needs and preferences," said Carter Yang, a spokesman for the trade group Airlines for America.
One of the most despised fees has largely disappeared: Most U.S. airlines dropped ticket-change fees after the pandemic devastated air travel last year.
The fees, which ranged up to $200 for changing or canceling a domestic flight, made some consumers reluctant to book a flight during uncertainty around COVID-19 rates and travel restrictions.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.
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A 2020 graduate of Kent State University with a Bachelor's degree in Journalism, Aaron has worked as an assigning editor ... Read more