[Congressional Bills 106th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H.R. 897 Introduced in House (IH)]







106th CONGRESS
  1st Session
                                H. R. 897

To direct the Secretary of Transportation to conduct a study and issue 
 a report on predatory and discriminatory practices of airlines which 
   restrict consumer access to unbiased air transportation passenger 
                     service and fare information.


_______________________________________________________________________


                    IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

                             March 2, 1999

  Mr. Forbes introduced the following bill; which was referred to the 
             Committee on Transportation and Infrastructure

_______________________________________________________________________

                                 A BILL


 
To direct the Secretary of Transportation to conduct a study and issue 
 a report on predatory and discriminatory practices of airlines which 
   restrict consumer access to unbiased air transportation passenger 
                     service and fare information.

    Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the 
United States of America in Congress assembled,

SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.

    This Act may be cited as the ``Consumer Access to Travel 
Information Act of 1999''.

SEC. 2. FINDINGS.

    Congress finds the following:
            (1) To foster and preserve competition, national 
        transportation policy should support the continuation of 
        widespread, convenient, and efficient public access to unbiased 
        comparative air transportation passenger service and fare 
        information.
            (2) The traveling public relies upon unbiased comparative 
        air transportation passenger service and fare information 
        provided by independent retail travel agents and other 
        independent sources.
            (3) Concentrations of market power, restrictions on entry, 
        and predatory and discriminatory practices of airlines impair 
        consumer access to independently distributed unbiased 
        comparative information about air transportation passenger 
        services and fares.
            (4) If not corrected, such practices will seriously 
        restrict consumer access to the independent and unbiased 
        service and fare information provided by travel agents and 
        other independent sources.

SEC. 3. POLICY.

    Section 40101(a) of title 49, United States Code, is amended by 
adding at the end the following:
            ``(16) ensuring that consumers may obtain unbiased 
        information in an efficient and convenient manner from travel 
        agents and other independent sources about air transportation 
        passenger services and fares.''.

SEC. 4. STUDY; REPORT.

    (a) Study.--Not later than 60 days after the date of the enactment 
of this Act, the Secretary of Transportation shall undertake a study of 
the availability to consumers of adequate unbiased information about 
air transportation passenger services and fares. The study shall 
include an investigation of the following:
            (1) Air carrier policies that deter or prevent travel 
        agents and other independent sources of such information from 
        using competitively efficient phone systems, computer 
        reservation systems, or other electronic systems to communicate 
        or consummate transactions with the public.
            (2) Air carrier policies that deter or prevent travel 
        agents and other independent sources of such information from 
        offering the public the same or greater concessions, benefits, 
        or services than those offered by air carriers directly to 
        those consumers.
            (3) Discriminatory collective or joint operation of assets 
        used to offer concessions, benefits, or services to the public 
        while denying comparable access to such concessions, benefits, 
        or services through travel agents and other independent 
        sources, including joint sales activities, denial of 
        competitive tools, and denial of distribution efficiencies.
            (4) Sharing of competitively significant sales transaction 
        data in violation of the confidentiality interests of the 
        travel agents or other independent sources that generated such 
        data.
            (5) As the Secretary of Transportation determines 
        appropriate, any other practices that are likely to impair 
        consumer access to independently distributed unbiased 
        comparative information about air transportation passenger 
        services or fares.
    (b) Report.--Not later than 1 year after the date of the enactment 
of this Act, the Secretary shall transmit to Congress a report of the 
conclusions of the study required by subsection (a).

SEC. 5. CEASE AND DESIST ORDERS.

    After notice and an opportunity for a hearing, the Secretary of 
Transportation shall order any air carrier or other party engaged in 
any practice or policy which constitutes a predatory, unfair, or 
deceptive practice or unfair method of competition which restricts the 
widespread, convenient, and efficient access by the public to unbiased 
comparative air transportation passenger service and fare information 
or the sale, booking, or distribution of air transportation passenger 
services or products, to cease and desist therefrom.
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