Notice2021-25084
Aviation Consumer Protection Advisory Committee Matters; Meeting
Primary source
Metadata and text below are from the Federal Register, a public-domain U.S. government work. Always verify the official published version before relying on it for any legal matter.
Published
November 17, 2021
Issuing agencies
Transportation Department
Abstract
Public meetings of the Aviation Consumer Protection Advisory Committee (ACPAC).
Full Text
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<title>Federal Register, Volume 86 Issue 219 (Wednesday, November 17, 2021)</title>
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[Federal Register Volume 86, Number 219 (Wednesday, November 17, 2021)]
[Notices]
[Pages 64292-64293]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [<a href="http://www.gpo.gov">www.gpo.gov</a>]
[FR Doc No: 2021-25084]
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DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION
Office of the Secretary
[Docket No. DOT-OST-2018-0190]
Aviation Consumer Protection Advisory Committee Matters; Meeting
AGENCY: Office of the Secretary (OST), Department of Transportation
(DOT).
ACTION: Notice of public meeting.
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SUMMARY: Public meetings of the Aviation Consumer Protection Advisory
Committee (ACPAC).
DATES: The first meeting will be held from 9:30 a.m.-5:00 p.m. (ET), on
December 2, 2021. The second meeting will be held from 9:30 a.m.-5:00
p.m. (ET), on March 21 and 22, 2022. Requests to attend the meeting
must be received by March 11, 2022.
ADDRESSES: The meetings will be open to the public. The first meeting
will be held virtually on Zoom's video platform. Please register for
the first meeting at <a href="https://usdot.zoomgov.com/webinar/register/WN_6X7_jo0CTvia3JfU9XR82A">https://usdot.zoomgov.com/webinar/register/WN_6X7_jo0CTvia3JfU9XR82A</a>. The second meeting is tentatively planned to
be held in-person at the DOT headquarters building in Washington, DC
and will be livestreamed. Attendance is open to the public, up to the
room's capacity of 100 attendees. In the event the meeting is held
virtually, information regarding how to attend the meeting virtually
will be provided to individuals who registered to attend the in-person
meeting. That information will also be made available to the public
through another Federal Register notice.
A detailed agenda for each meeting will be available on the ACPAC
website at <a href="https://www.transportation.gov/airconsumer/ACPAC">https://www.transportation.gov/airconsumer/ACPAC</a> in advance
of each meeting, along with copies of the meeting minutes after the
meeting.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Register for the first virtual meeting
at <a href="https://usdot.zoomgov.com/webinar/register/WN_6X7_jo0CTvia3JfU9XR82A">https://usdot.zoomgov.com/webinar/register/WN_6X7_jo0CTvia3JfU9XR82A</a>. To register for the second in-person
meeting, please contact the Department by email at <a href="/cdn-cgi/l/email-protection#e6a7a5b6a7a5a6828992c8818990"><span class="__cf_email__" data-cfemail="74353724353734101b005a131b02">[email protected]</span></a>. In
the event the meeting is held virtually, information regarding how to
attend the meeting virtually will be provided to individuals who
registered to attend the in-person meeting. That information will also
be made available to the public through another Federal Register
notice. Attendance is open to the public subject to any technical and/
or capacity limitations. For further information, contact Kimberly
Graber, Deputy Assistant General Counsel, by telephone at (202) 366-
1695 or by email at <a href="/cdn-cgi/l/email-protection#ef8486828d8a9d8396c1889d8e8d8a9daf8b809bc1888099"><span class="__cf_email__" data-cfemail="fd9694909f988f9184d39a8f9c9f988fbd999289d39a928b">[email protected]</span></a>.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:
I. Background
The ACPAC was initially established as a Federal advisory committee
by the Department as mandated by the FAA Modernization and Reform Act
of 2012. The statutory termination date for the Committee has been
extended several times, most recently by the FAA Reauthorization Act of
2018 (2018 FAA Act), to the current termination date of September 20,
2023. The ACPAC evaluates current aviation consumer protection programs
and provides recommendations to the Secretary for improving them, as
well as recommending any additional consumer protections that may be
needed.
II. Purpose of the Meetings and Agendas
A. December 2, 2021 Meeting
Two topics will be discussed at the December 2, 2021 meeting--(1)
Airline Ticket Refunds and (2) Information for Consumers Adversely
Affected by Airline Delays or Cancellations. Regarding airline ticket
refunds, the Department has consistently interpreted 49 U.S.C. 41712,
which prohibits U.S. air carriers, foreign air carriers, and ticket
agents from engaging in unfair practices in the sale of air
transportation, to require carriers and ticket agents to provide
requested refunds to passengers when a carrier cancels or significantly
changes a flight to, from, or within the United States. The Department
has not defined the terms ``significant change'' and ``cancellation''
in regulation or statute. The Department has announced a rulemaking \1\
that would clarify in regulation the Department's longstanding
interpretation of the refund requirement. In addition, the rulemaking
would also address protections for consumers who are unable to travel
due to government restrictions. The ACPAC will consider potential
definitions of the terms ``significant change'' and ``cancellation''
and the issue of protections for consumers who are unable to travel due
to government restrictions or advisories.
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\1\ Airline Ticket Refunds, RIN 2105-AF04.
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Regarding reporting the causes of airline delays and cancellations,
Section 413 of the 2018 FAA Act directs the Department to review the
categorization by reporting airlines of the causes of delays and
cancellations, including, among other things, whether it is an unfair
or deceptive practice for an air carrier to inform a passenger that a
flight is delayed or cancelled due to weather
[[Page 64293]]
alone when other factors are involved. Section 413 states that the
Department may consult with the ACPAC to assist in conducting the
review and providing recommendations on improving the quality and
quantity of information provided to passengers adversely affected by a
cancellation or delay. At the December 2, 2021 meeting, the Committee
will consider the quality and quantity of information on causes of
airline delays or cancellations provided to passengers adversely
affected by an airline cancellation or delay, focusing on whether it is
an unfair or deceptive practice for an air carrier to inform a
passenger that a flight is delayed or cancelled due to weather alone
when other factors are involved.
B. March 21 and 22, 2022 Meeting
Two topics, one continuing from the December meeting and one new
topic, will be discussed at the March 21 and 22, 2022 meeting--(1)
Airline Ticket Refunds (continued) and (2) Enhancing Consumer Access to
Airline Flight Information. Regarding airline ticket refunds, the
Committee will continue to consider this topic and will discuss the
Department's Airline Ticket Refunds Notice of Proposed Rulemaking which
the Department anticipates will be issued prior to the March 21 and 22,
2022 meeting.
Regarding the second topic, the Executive Order on Promoting
Competition in the American Economy, issued on July 9, 2021 (E.O.
14036), directed the Department to take action to protect consumers and
promote competition. Specifically, the Department is directed, among
other things, to ``promote enhanced transparency and consumer
safeguards, as appropriate and consistent with applicable law,
including through potential rulemaking, enforcement actions, or
guidance documents, with the aims of: (1) Enhancing consumer access to
airline flight information so that consumers can more easily find a
broader set of available flights, including by new or lesser known
airlines; and . . .'' The ACPAC will consider the topic of enhancing
access to airline flight information so that consumers can more easily
find a broader set of available flights.
III. Public Participation
The meetings will be open to the public; however, attendance may be
limited due to constraints of the virtual platform and/or physical
meeting space. Register for the December 2, 2021 meeting at <a href="https://usdot.zoomgov.com/webinar/register/WN_6X7_jo0CTvia3JfU9XR82A">https://usdot.zoomgov.com/webinar/register/WN_6X7_jo0CTvia3JfU9XR82A</a>. To
register for the March 2022 meeting, please send an email to the
Department as set forth in the FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT section.
The Department is committed to providing equal access to this meeting
for all participants. If you need alternative formats or services
because of a disability, such as sign language interpreter or other
ancillary aids, please contact the person listed in the FOR FURTHER
INFORMATION CONTACT section.
Members of the public may also present written comments at any
time. The docket number referenced above (DOT-OST-2018-0190) has been
established for committee documents including any written comments that
may be filed. At the discretion of the Chair or Designated Federal
Officer of ACPAC, after completion of the planned agenda, individual
members of the public may provide comments, time permitting. Any oral
comments presented must be limited to the objectives of the Committee
and will be limited to five (5) minutes per person.
Individual members of the public who wish to present oral comments
must provide advance notice to the Department of Transportation contact
noted above via email that they wish to present oral comments. Advance
notice by individuals wishing to present oral comments at the December
2, 2021 must be provided to the Department no later than Monday,
November 22, 2021. Advance notice by individuals wishing to present
oral comments at the March 21 and 22, 2022 meeting must be provided to
the Department no later than Friday, March 11, 2022.
Speakers are requested to submit a written copy of their prepared
remarks for inclusion in the meeting records and for circulation to
ACPAC members prior to the meetings. Individuals speaking at the
December 2, 2021 meeting are requested to submit their remarks no later
than Monday, November 29, 2021. Individuals speaking at the March 21
and 22, 2022 meeting are requested to submit their remarks no later
than Tuesday, March 15, 2022. All prepared remarks submitted on time
will be accepted and considered as part of the meeting's record.
IV. Viewing Documents
You may view documents mentioned in this notice at <a href="https://www.regulations.gov">https://www.regulations.gov</a>. After entering the docket number (DOT-OST-2018-
0190), click the link to ``Open Docket Folder'' and choose the document
to review.
Issued in Washington, DC, this 12th day of November 2021.
John E. Putnam,
Deputy General Counsel.
[FR Doc. 2021-25084 Filed 11-16-21; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 4910-9X-P
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