Proposed Rule2023-04510
Enhancing Transparency of Airline Ancillary Service Fees
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
March 3, 2023
Issuing agencies
Transportation Department
Abstract
This Notice announces a virtual public hearing on certain issues related to the U.S. Department of Transportation's Notice of Proposed Rulemaking on Enhancing Transparency of Airline Ancillary Service Fees.
Full Text
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<title>Federal Register, Volume 88 Issue 42 (Friday, March 3, 2023)</title>
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[Federal Register Volume 88, Number 42 (Friday, March 3, 2023)]
[Proposed Rules]
[Pages 13389-13392]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [<a href="http://www.gpo.gov">www.gpo.gov</a>]
[FR Doc No: 2023-04510]
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DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION
Office of the Secretary
14 CFR Part 399
[Docket No. DOT-OST-2022-0109]
RIN 2105-AF10
Enhancing Transparency of Airline Ancillary Service Fees
AGENCY: Office of the Secretary (OST), U.S. Department of
Transportation (DOT).
ACTION: Public hearing.
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SUMMARY: This Notice announces a virtual public hearing on certain
issues related to the U.S. Department of Transportation's Notice of
Proposed Rulemaking on Enhancing Transparency of Airline Ancillary
Service Fees.
DATES: The virtual hearing will be held on March 16, 2023, from 10:00
a.m. to 5:00 p.m. Eastern Time. The hearing is open to the public,
subject to any technical and/or capacity limitations. Requests to
attend the hearing must be submitted to <a href="https://usdot.zoomgov.com/webinar/register/WN_v-c7rpgUR5yvFVePlnQU_A">https://usdot.zoomgov.com/webinar/register/WN_v-c7rpgUR5yvFVePlnQU_A</a>. We encourage interested
parties to register by Monday, March 13, 2023. Communication Access
Real-time Translation (CART) and sign language interpretation will be
provided during the hearing. Requests for additional accommodations
because of a disability must be received at <a href="/cdn-cgi/l/email-protection#e4a7968d97908d8a85caa0968583919085a4808b90ca838b92"><span class="__cf_email__" data-cfemail="3b784952484f52555a157f495a5c4e4f5a7b5f544f155c544d">[email protected]</span></a> by
Monday, March 13, 2023.
ADDRESSES: The virtual hearing will be open to the public and held via
the Zoom Webinar Platform. Virtual attendance information will be
provided upon registration. An agenda will be available on the
Department's Office of Aviation Consumer Protection website at <a href="https://www.transportation.gov/airconsumer/latest-news">https://www.transportation.gov/airconsumer/latest-news</a> in advance of the
hearing.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: To register and attend this virtual
hearing, please use the link: <a href="https://usdot.zoomgov.com/webinar/register/WN_v-c7rpgUR5yvFVePlnQU_A">https://usdot.zoomgov.com/webinar/register/WN_v-c7rpgUR5yvFVePlnQU_A</a>. Attendance is open to the public
subject to any technical and/or capacity limitations. For further
information, please contact Cristina Draguta, Attorney-Advisor, by
email at <a href="/cdn-cgi/l/email-protection#baf9c8d3c9ced3d4db94fec8dbddcfcedbfaded5ce94ddd5cc"><span class="__cf_email__" data-cfemail="387b4a514b4c515659167c4a595f4d4c59785c574c165f574e">[email protected]</span></a>.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:
I. Background
On October 20, 2022, the U.S. Department of Transportation (DOT or
Department) published in the Federal Register a notice of proposed
rulemaking (NPRM) that proposed several disclosure requirements to
enhance the transparency of ancillary service fees so consumers know
the true cost of air travel early in the purchasing process. (87 FR
63718). In the NPRM, the Department proposed to require U.S. air
carriers, foreign air carriers, and ticket agents to clearly disclose
passenger-specific or itinerary-specific baggage fees, change fees, and
cancellation fees to consumers whenever fare and schedule information
is provided to consumers for flights to, within, and from the United
States. The Department also proposed requiring similar disclosures for
fees for a child 13 or under to be seated adjacent to an accompanying
adult, as well as the transactability of such seating fees. To ensure
ticket agents could provide the proposed disclosures, the NPRM proposed
requiring carriers to provide useable, current, and accurate
information regarding fees to ticket agents that sell or display the
carrier's fare and schedule information. The
[[Page 13390]]
NPRM also proposed an implementation and compliance period of six
months from the date of a potential final rule.
The NPRM provided for a comment period of 60 days after publication
of the NPRM in the Federal Register, i.e., December 19, 2022. In
response to a request for additional opportunity to comment, the
Department extended the comment period for an additional 35 days to
January 23, 2023.\1\ The Department subsequently received a request to
further extend the comment period on the basis that the requestor was
not able to view the January 12, 2023 meeting of the Aviation Consumer
Protection Advisory Committee meeting when it occurred and that as of
the time the request for extension was submitted, the meeting materials
had not been posted to the docket. The Department declined to extend
the comment period based on that request. (88 FR 4923 (Jan. 26, 2023)).
The Department received another request for additional time to provide
comments on the NPRM, based primarily on technological and interface
issues identified by the petitioner. The Department is considering
whether to grant that request and will publish its determination in the
Federal Register. (See <a href="https://www.transportation.gov/airconsumer/AncillaryFeeNPRM-Procedural-Information-January23-2023">https://www.transportation.gov/airconsumer/AncillaryFeeNPRM-Procedural-Information-January23-2023</a>.)
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\1\ 87 FR 77765 (Dec. 20, 2022).
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On January 23, 2023, multiple commenters petitioned the Department
for a public hearing on the NPRM pursuant to the Department's
regulation on rulemakings relating to unfair and deceptive practices,
14 CFR 399.75.\2\ Airlines for America raised two questions in its
petition: whether consumers are or are likely to be substantially
injured or are misled by airlines' current disclosures of ancillary
service fees; and whether disclosures of itinerary-specific ancillary
fees at the time of first search will result in the display of
incomplete or inapplicable ancillary fee information, cause consumer
confusion, and distort the marketplace. The Travel Technology
Association (Travel Tech) states in its petition that there is a
fundamental disputed factual issue as to whether the proposed display
requirements would benefit or harm consumers. Travel Tech also believes
that the proposed disclosures are technically infeasible and has
requested a hearing to discuss these concerns as well as the
Department's proposed time frame for compliance. In its comment on the
NPRM, Google LLC also requested a hearing based on its assertion that
the Department's analysis was flawed and that it was deficient in
providing its complaint-based evidence justifying the rulemaking. In
arguing that a hearing is in the public interest pursuant to 14 CFR
399.75, Airlines for America and Travel Tech assert that the underlying
proposed rule depends on conclusions concerning one or more specific
scientific, technical, economic, or other factual issues that are
genuinely in dispute; the ordinary public comment process is unlikely
to provide an adequate examination of the issue to permit a fully
informed judgement; the resolution of the disputed factual issues would
likely have a material effect on the costs and benefits of the proposed
rule; the requested hearing on the issue would advance the
consideration of the proposed rule and the General Counsel's ability to
make the rulemaking determinations required by the Department's
regulation; and a hearing will not unreasonably delay completion of
this rulemaking.
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\2\ See, e.g., petitions for hearing from Airlines for America,
<a href="https://www.regulations.gov/comment/DOT-OST-2022-0109-0091">https://www.regulations.gov/comment/DOT-OST-2022-0109-0091</a>, the
Travel Technology Association, <a href="https://www.regulations.gov/comment/DOT-OST-2022-0109-0239">https://www.regulations.gov/comment/DOT-OST-2022-0109-0239</a>, and Google LLC, <a href="https://www.regulations.gov/comment/DOT-OST-2022-0109-0088">https://www.regulations.gov/comment/DOT-OST-2022-0109-0088</a>.
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The Department has carefully considered the petitions for a public
hearing consistent with 14 CFR 399.75 and is granting a public hearing
to afford Petitioners and other stakeholders an opportunity, in
addition to the public comment process, to present factual issues that
they believe are pertinent to the Department's decision on the
rulemaking.\3\ The scope of the hearing is limited to the factual
issues specified in this notice.
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\3\ With its comment and petition, Google LLC noted similar
concerns as Airlines for America and Travel Tech regarding the
substance of the NPRM's proposals. However, Google LLC's petition
was articulated in a footnote which did not make a sufficient
showing that a hearing would be in the public interest. See 14 CFR
399.75(b)(2) for factors that assist in determining whether a
petition is in the public interest. As such, we deny Google LLC's
petition for a hearing in part to the extent the subjects of
Google's petition are not otherwise addressed as part of the
petitions of Airlines for America and Travel Tech.
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The Department's proposals are set forth in the October 2022 NPRM.
The issues identified by Petitioners concerning the Department's NPRM
and on which they request a hearing are discussed in more detail in
their petitions for rehearing. The information the Department is
requesting during the hearing on these issues is summarized below.
Issue 1: Whether Consumers Are or Are Likely To Be Substantially
Injured or Misled by Airlines' Current Disclosures of Ancillary Service
Fees
The Department welcomes information during the hearing on the
following topics, to the extent it has not been provided in any written
comments already submitted to the Docket:
<bullet> Information from consumers and others about instances in
which they searched for and/or purchased tickets for air travel and
were confused or surprised by the baggage fees that they would need to
pay.
<bullet> Statistical information from carriers and ticket agents
about the number of complaints they receive from consumers expressing
confusion or surprise at the baggage fees they were asked or made to
pay.
<bullet> Information from consumers and others about instances in
which they searched for and/or purchased tickets for air travel and
were confused or surprised by the ticket change or cancellation fees
that they would need to pay.
<bullet> Statistical information from carriers and ticket agents
about the number of complaints they receive from consumers expressing
confusion or surprise at the ticket change or cancellation fees they
were asked or made to pay.
<bullet> Information from consumers and others about instances in
which they searched for and/or purchased tickets for air travel and
were confused or surprised that they would need to pay a fee for a
child age 13 or under to be seated next to an accompanying adult.
<bullet> Statistical information from carriers and ticket agents
about the number of complaints they receive from consumers expressing
confusion or surprise that they were asked or made to pay a fee for a
child age 13 or under to be seated next to an accompanying adult.
<bullet> Data on the frequency with which consumers view ancillary
fee pages on airline websites.
<bullet> Data on the frequency with which consumers using ticket
agent websites click on links to airline ancillary fee policies
(whether external or internal links).
<bullet> Data on the frequency with which consumers conduct
itinerary searches on airline websites and on ticket agent websites.
<bullet> Data and information regarding whether the Department's
proposals would require significant changes to product displays and how
such changes could impact consumers.
<bullet> Any other factual information that is pertinent to the
Department's determination on this proposal.
[[Page 13391]]
Issue 2: Whether Disclosures of Itinerary-Specific Ancillary Fees at
the Time of First Search Will Result in the Display of Incomplete or
Inapplicable Ancillary Fee Information, Cause Consumer Confusion, and
Distort the Marketplace
The Department welcomes the following information during the
hearing to the extent it has not been provided in any written comments
already submitted to the Docket:
<bullet> Information on whether and how ancillary fee information
is currently displayed to consumers as they use airline or ticket agent
online booking systems to purchase tickets.
<bullet> Information or data on the proportion of airlines and
ticket agents that employ online booking systems that do not display
specific ancillary fees on the itinerary search results page of the
booking process but do display specific ancillary fees on other pages
of the booking process prior to the consumer executing a purchase or
reservation.
<bullet> Data or information on whether and to what extent the lack
of ancillary fee information at the time of itinerary and fare
selection results in higher total trip costs to consumers compared to
alternatives or higher time spent on the ticket purchase process.
<bullet> Information from consumers and others about the time spent
searching for ancillary fee information on an airline or ticket agent
website.
<bullet> Information from consumers and others about the added time
spent, if any, from restarting an itinerary search due to a lack of
ancillary fee information being displayed upfront.
<bullet> Information from consumers and others about added costs
and/or time spent on searching airline and/or ticket agent websites to
find fees for baggage, changes and cancellations, and family seating.
<bullet> Information from consumers and others about added costs
and/or time spent on calculating the total price of a ticket to include
baggage fees and family seating fees.
<bullet> Data and information regarding any potential for consumer
confusion from overcrowded displays or information overload that could
result from the Department's proposal, particularly on mobile or other
devices with smaller displays.
<bullet> Any other information that is pertinent to the
Department's determination on this proposal.
Issue 3: Whether Requiring Fee Disclosures on the First Page of the
Itinerary Search Selection Process Would Be Technically Infeasible
The Department welcomes the following information during the
hearing to the extent it has not been provided in any written comments
already submitted to the Docket:
<bullet> Factual information or data on the proportion of consumers
that search for and/or purchase tickets for air travel using mobile
devices (e.g., mobile phones and tablets), and the proportion of ticket
searches and/or purchases that are conducted using each type of mobile
device.
<bullet> Factual information or data on the impact of additional
disclosure requirements on web page and booking engine load times.
<bullet> Factual or demonstrative information on alternatives to
the proposed disclosure requirements, as well as how the proposed
disclosure requirements would be represented and used on mobile
displays.
<bullet> Information on whether additional time for compliance with
the proposal would mitigate the above concerns.
II. Agenda, Hearing Officer, and Post-Hearing Actions
During the March 16, 2023, hearing, the Department will hear
information from the public on the three subjects described above. The
Department's tentative positions on these subjects are articulated in
the NPRM. The Department does not expect to provide further summary or
explanation on its positions.
The Department is appointing Blane Workie, Assistant General
Counsel, Office of Aviation Consumer Protection, as the Hearing Officer
presiding over the hearing. The Department's regulations at 14 CFR
399.75 specify that the General Counsel shall arrange for a hearing
officer to preside over the hearing. The regulations further provide
that after the hearing process is complete, the General Counsel must
consider the record of the hearing and make a reasoned determination
whether to terminate the rulemaking, proceed with the rulemaking as
proposed, or modify the proposed rule. The regulations further require
the General Counsel to explain, in an appropriate rulemaking document
published in the Federal Register, the rationale for the post-hearing
decision made by the General Counsel. The rationale for the post-
hearing decision made by the General Counsel will be explained in any
final rule or other appropriate rulemaking document issued by the
Department for this action.
III. Public Participation
The March 16, 2023, hearing will begin at 10:00 a.m. ET, and the
Department will provide time for opening remarks by the Hearing
Officer. The meeting will then transition to public comments and
presentations. Any oral comments presented should be limited to the
subjects described in this Notice and be brief so all participants will
have an opportunity to speak. Depending on the volume of request for
oral comments that we receive and the time available, we may be able to
accommodate additional comments and/or presentations that speakers wish
to add. Individual members of the public who wish to present oral
comments must notify the Department of Transportation, no later than
Monday, March 13 via email at <a href="/cdn-cgi/l/email-protection#e7b59e8689c9b78693868986978f8689a7838893c9808891"><span class="__cf_email__" data-cfemail="4c1e352d22621c2d382d222d3c242d220c282338622b233a">[email protected]</span></a> that they wish to
present oral comments. The email should (1) identify specific
subject(s) on which you wish to provide comments; and (2) state the
organization or entity you are representing or that you are speaking as
a member of the public. All written materials (e.g., PowerPoint
presentations) presented at the hearing will be made part of the
meeting's record.
Consistent with the requirement of 14 CFR 399.75, the Department
plans to reopen the comment period for this rulemaking on March 16,
2023, the date of the hearing, and the comment period will remain open
for seven (7) days, closing on March 23, 2023. Interested parties who
wish to file statements or comments that are specifically related to
the subject(s) discussed at the hearing may submit their written
comments electronically to the NPRM Docket (DOT-OST-2022-0109).
After the hearing and after the record of the hearing is closed,
the hearing officer will place on the rulemaking docket minutes of the
hearing reflecting the evidence and arguments presented on the issues.
IV. Viewing Documents
Documents associated with the NPRM on Enhancing Transparency of
Airline Ancillary Service Fees may be accessed in the rulemaking Docket
(DOT-OST-2022-0109). Dockets may be accessed at <a href="https://www.regulations.gov">https://www.regulations.gov</a>. After entering the relevant docket number click
the link to ``Open Docket Folder'' and choose the document to review.
[[Page 13392]]
Signed in Washington, DC, on this 28th day of February 2023.
John E. Putnam,
General Counsel, U.S. Department of Transportation.
[FR Doc. 2023-04510 Filed 3-2-23; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 4910-9X-P
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