Economic Liberties Applauds New DOT Rulemaking on Automatic Compensation
Washington, D.C. — In response to news that the U.S. Department of Transportation (DOT) has announced a new rulemaking that will provide unprecedented protections for passengers stranded when flights are canceled or significantly changed, the American Economic Liberties Project released the following statement.
“Thanks to the DOT and Secretary Pete Buttigieg, the United States is finally catching up to much of the rest of the world when it comes to protecting airline passengers,” said William J. McGee, Senior Fellow for Aviation and Travel at the American Economic Liberties Project. “In fact, by providing automatic compensation when flights are canceled or significantly changed that will completely eliminate the consumer hassles of filing complaints—that have often been all but ignored—the Advance Notice of Proposed Rulemaking (ANPR) bolsters consumer passenger rights more than most other countries. Advocates have been fighting for such rights for nearly two decades, and the long overdue protections included in this rule should be implemented as soon as possible.”
“The rulemaking is also a prime opportunity for the incoming Trump administration to deliver on its populist economic promises,” added McGee. “If the new DOT Secretary truly wants to show they’re committed to standing up for Americans’ economic freedom against Too-Big-To-Care Airlines, completing the rulemaking process is a critical chance to do so.”
The ANPR includes the following provisions:
- Cash compensation for flight disruptions, ranging from $200 to $775 depending on the length of the delay, and potentially when flights are canceled less than a week in advance.
- Rebooking at no additional cost on the next available flight.
- Meals, lodging, and transportation costs.
In recent years, “Airline Passenger Bills of Rights” have been implemented in nations ranging from the European Union to the United Kingdom, and from Canada to Israel, India, and Brazil. They often provide uniform, standardized, and mandatory compensation and accommodations when flight disruptions cause passengers to be inconvenienced, by airlines both domestic and foreign. This has created the irony of U.S. citizens flying on U.S. airlines being treated far better on foreign soil than on U.S. soil.
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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.