Washington, D.C. — In response to Airbnb’s recent announcement that it will allow users to search the platform using total price, bringing more transparency to hidden fees in the checkout process, the American Economic Liberties Project released the following statement.

“It’s no coincidence that Airbnb announced it is making its pricing more transparent just weeks after the Biden administration accelerated its fight against junk fees,” said Sarah Miller, Executive Director of the American Economic Liberties Project. “The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau and Federal Trade Commission have prioritized eliminating deceptive and purposeless fees across the economy, and that work is now rippling through corporate America. This is the start of a sea change that puts working families’ economic well-being first, and one we are committed to seeing succeed.”

A week ago, President Biden, along with the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau’s Rohit Chopra and the Federal Trade Commission’s Lina Khan, announced new measures to crack down on hidden junk fees across the economy, specifically calling out hidden fees in hotel booking, among others. The President directed his administration to examine these practices in their respective industries and take necessary steps to address them.

The CFPB recently announced new guidance designed to stop two common junk fee practices — surprise overdraft fees and surprise depositor fees. At a commission hearing in late October, the FTC voted 3-1 to initiate a rulemaking proceeding to crackdown on fees that are charged with little or no added value to the consumer.

Learn more about Economic Liberties here.

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The American Economic Liberties Project works to ensure America’s system of commerce is structured to advance, rather than undermine, economic liberty, fair commerce, and a secure, inclusive democracy. Economic Liberties believes true economic liberty means entrepreneurs and businesses large and small succeed on the merits of their ideas and hard work; commerce empowers consumers, workers, farmers, and engineers instead of subjecting them to discrimination and abuse from financiers and monopolists; foreign trade arrangements support domestic security and democracy; and wealth is broadly distributed to support equitable political power.