[Congressional Bills 107th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[S. 483 Introduced in Senate (IS)]







107th CONGRESS
  1st Session
                                 S. 483

  To amend title 49, United States Code, to improve the disclosure of 
  information to airline passengers and the enforceability of airline 
 passengers' rights under airline customer service agreements, and for 
                            other purposes.


_______________________________________________________________________


                   IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES

                             March 7, 2001

   Mr. Wyden introduced the following bill; which was read twice and 
   referred to the Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation

_______________________________________________________________________

                                 A BILL


 
  To amend title 49, United States Code, to improve the disclosure of 
  information to airline passengers and the enforceability of airline 
 passengers' rights under airline customer service agreements, and for 
                            other purposes.

    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 ``Fair Treatment of Airline Passengers 
Act''.

SEC. 2. FINDINGS.

    The Congress finds the following:
            (1) United States airline traffic is increasing. The number 
        of domestic passengers carried by United States air carriers 
        has nearly tripled since 1978, to over 660 million annually. 
        The number is expected to grow to more than 1 billion by 2010. 
        The number of domestic flights has been steadily increasing as 
        well.
            (2) The Inspector General of the Department of 
        Transporation has found that with this growth in traffic have 
        come increases in delays, cancellations, and customer 
        dissatisfaction with air carrier service.
                    (A) The Federal Aviation Administration has 
                reported that, between 1995 and 2000, delays increased 
                90 percent and cancellations increased 104 percent. In 
                2000, over 1 in 4 flights were delayed, canceled, or 
                diverted, affecting approximately 163 million 
                passengers.
                    (B) At the 30 largest United States airports, the 
                number of flights with taxi-out times of 1 hour or more 
                increased 165 percent between 1995 and 2000. The number 
                of flights with taxi-out times of 4 hours or more 
                increased 341 percent during the same period.
                    (C) Certain flights, particularly those scheduled 
                during peak periods at the nation's busiest airports, 
                are subject to chronic delays. In December, 2000, 626 
                regularly-scheduled flights arrived late 70 percent of 
                the time or more, as reported by the Department of 
                Transportation.
                    (D) Consumer complaints filed with the Department 
                of Transportation about airline travel have nearly 
                quadrupled since 1995. The Department of Transportation 
                Inspector General has estimated that air carriers 
                receive between 100 and 400 complaints for every 
                complaint filed with the Department of Transportation.
            (3) At the same time as the number of complaints about 
        airline travel has increased, the resources devoted to 
        Department of Transportation handling of such complaints have 
        declined sharply. The Department of Transportation Inspector 
        General has reported that the staffing of the Department of 
        Transportation office responsible for handling airline customer 
        service complaints declined from 40 in 1985 to just 17 in 2000.
            (4) In June, 1999, the Air Transport Association and its 
        member airlines agreed to an Airline Customer Service 
        Commitment designed to address mounting consumer 
        dissatisfaction and improve customer service in the industry.
            (5) The Department of Transportation Inspector General has 
        reviewed the airlines' implementation of the Airline Customer 
        Service Commitment. The Inspector General found that:
                    (A) The Airline Customer Service Commitment has 
                prompted air carriers to address consumer concerns in 
                many areas, resulting in positive changes in how air 
                travelers are treated.
                    (B) Despite this progress, there continue to be 
                significant shortfalls in reliable and timely 
                communication with passengers about flight delays and 
                cancellations. Reports to passengers about flight 
                status are frequently untimely, incomplete, or 
                unreliable.
                    (C) Air carriers need to do more, in the areas 
                under their control, to reduce over-scheduling, the 
                number of chronically-late or canceled flights, and the 
                amount of checked baggage that does not show up with 
                the passenger upon arrival.
                    (D) A number of further steps could be taken to 
                improve the effectiveness and enforceability of the 
                Airline Customer Service Commitment and to improve the 
                consumer protections available to commercial air 
                passengers.

SEC. 3. FAIR TREATMENT OF AIRLINE PASSENGERS.

    (a) In General.--Subchapter I of chapter 417 of title 49, United 
States Code, is amended by adding at the end the following:
``Sec.  41722. Airline passengers' right to know
    ``(a) Disclosure of On-Time Performance.--Whenever any person 
contacts an air carrier to make a reservation or to purchase a ticket 
on a consistently-delayed or canceled flight, the air carrier shall 
disclose (without being requested), at the time the reservation or 
purchase is requested, the on-time performance and cancellation rate 
for that flight for the most recent month for which data is available. 
For purposes of this paragraph, the term `consistently-delayed or 
canceled flight' means a regularly-scheduled flight--
            ``(1) that has failed to arrive on-time (as defined in 
        section 234.2 of title 14, Code of Federal Regulations) at 
        least 40 percent of the time during the most recent 3-month 
        period for which data are available; or
            ``(2) at least 20 percent of the departures of which have 
        been canceled during the most recent 3-month period for which 
        data are available.
    ``(b) On-Time Performance Posted on Website.--An air carrier that 
has a website on the Internet shall include in the information posted 
about each flight operated by that air carrier the flight's on-time 
performance (as defined in section 234.2 of title 14, Code of Federal 
Regulations) for the most recent month for which data is available.
    ``(c) Passenger Information Concerning Delays, Cancellations, and 
Diversions.--
            ``(1) In general--Whenever a flight is delayed, canceled, 
        or diverted, the air carrier operating that flight shall 
        provide to customers at the airport and on board the aircraft, 
        in a timely, reasonable, and truthful manner, the best 
        available information regarding such delay, cancellation, or 
        diversion, including--
                    ``(A) the cause of the delay, cancellation, or 
                diversion; and
                    ``(B) in the case of a delayed flight, the 
                carrier's best estimate of the departure time.
            ``(2) Public information.--An air carrier that provides a 
        telephone number or website for the public to obtain flight 
        status information shall ensure that the information provided 
        via such telephone number or website will reflect the best and 
        most current information available concerning delays, 
        cancellations, and diversions.
    ``(d) Pre-Departure Notification System.--Within 6 months after the 
date of enactment of the Fair Treatment of Airline Passengers Act, each 
air carrier that is a reporting carrier (as defined in section 234.2 of 
title 14, Code of Federal Regulations) shall establish a reasonable 
system (taking into account the size, financial condition, and cost 
structure of the air carrier) for notifying passengers before their 
arrival at the airport when the air carrier knows sufficiently in 
advance of the check-in time for their flight that the flight will be 
canceled or delayed by an hour or more.
    ``(e) Coordination of Monitors; Current Information.--At any 
airport at which the status of flights to or from that airport is 
displayed to the public on flight status monitors operated by the 
airport, each air carrier the flights of which are displayed on the 
monitors shall work closely with the airport to ensure that flight 
information shown on the monitors reflects the best and most current 
information available.
    ``(f) Frequent Flyer Program Information.--Within 6 months after 
the date of enactment of the Fair Treatment of Airline Passengers Act, 
each air carrier that maintains a frequent flyer program shall increase 
the comprehensiveness and accessibility to the public of its reporting 
of frequent flyer award redemption information. The information 
reported shall include--
            ``(1) the percentage of successful redemptions of requested 
        frequent flyer awards for free tickets or class-of-service 
        upgrades for the air carrier;
            ``(2) the percentage of successful redemptions of requested 
        frequent flyer awards for free tickets or class-of-service 
        upgrades for each flight in the air carrier's top 100 
        origination and destination markets; and
            ``(3) the percentage of seats available for frequent flyer 
        awards on each flight in its top 100 origination and 
        destination markets.
    ``(g) Overbooking.--
            ``(1) Oversold flight disclosure.--An air carrier shall 
        inform a ticketed passenger, upon request, whether the flight 
        on which the passenger is ticketed is oversold.
            ``(2) Bumping compensation information.--An air carrier 
        shall inform passengers on a flight what the air carrier will 
        pay passengers involuntarily denied boarding before making 
        offers to passengers to induce them voluntarily to relinquish 
        seats.
            ``(3) Disclosure of bumping policy.--An air carrier shall 
        disclose, both on its Internet website, if any, and on its 
        ticket jackets, its criteria for determining which passengers 
        will be involuntarily denied boarding on an oversold flight and 
        its procedures for offering compensation to passengers 
        voluntarily or involuntarily denied boarding on an oversold 
        flight.
    ``(h) Mishandled Baggage Reporting.--Within 6 months after the date 
of enactment of the Fair Treatment of Airline Passengers Act, each air 
carrier shall revise its reporting for mishandled baggage to show--
            ``(1) the percentage of checked baggage that is mishandled 
        during a reporting period;
            ``(2) the number of mishandled bags during a reporting 
        period; and
            ``(3) the average length of time between the receipt of a 
        passenger's claim for missing baggage and the delivery of the 
        bag to the passenger.
    ``(i) Small Air Carrier Exception.--This section does not apply to 
an air carrier that operates no civil aircraft designed to have a 
maximum passenger seating capacity of more than 30 passengers.
``Sec.  41723. Enforcement and enhancement of airline passenger service 
              commitments
    ``(a) Adoption of Customer Service Plan.--Within 6 months after the 
date of enactment of the Fair Treatment of Airline Passengers Act, an 
air carrier certificated under section 41102 that has not already done 
so shall--
            ``(1) develop and adopt a customer service plan designed to 
        implement the provisions of the Airline Customer Service 
        Commitment executed by the Air Transport Association and 14 of 
        its member airlines on June 17, 1999;
            ``(2) incorporate its customer service plan in its contract 
        of carriage;
            ``(3) incorporate the provisions of that Commitment if, and 
        to the extent that those provisions are more specific than, or 
        relate to issues not covered by, its customer service plan;
            ``(4) submit a copy of its customer service plan to the 
        Secretary of Transportation;
            ``(5) post a copy of its contract of carriage on its 
        Internet website, if any; and
            ``(6) notify all ticketed customers, either at the time a 
        ticket is purchased or on a printed itinerary provided to the 
        customer, that the contract of carriage is available upon 
        request or on the air carrier's website.
    ``(b) Modifications.--Any modification in any air carrier's 
customer service plan shall be promptly incorporated in its contract of 
carriage, submitted to the Secretary, and posted on its website.
    ``(c) Quality Assurance and Performance Measurement System.--
            ``(1) Air carriers.--Within 6 months after the date of 
        enactment of the Fair Treatment of Airline Passengers Act, an 
        air carrier certificated under section 41102, after 
        consultation with the Inspector General of the Department of 
        Transportation, shall--
                    ``(A) establish a quality assurance and performance 
                measurement system for customer service; and
                    ``(B) establish an internal audit process to 
                measure compliance with its customer service plan.
            ``(2) DOT approval required.--Each air carrier shall submit 
        the measurement system established under paragraph (1)(A) and 
        the audit process established under paragraph (1)(B) to the 
        Secretary of Transportation for review and approval.
    ``(d) Customer Service Plan Enhancements.--Within 6 months after 
the date of enactment of the Fair Treatment of Airline Passengers Act, 
an air carrier certificated under section 41102 shall--
            ``(1) amend its customer service plan to specify that it 
        will offer to a customer purchasing a ticket at any of the air 
        carrier's ticket offices or airport ticket service counters the 
        lowest fare available for which that customer is eligible; and
            ``(2) establish performance goals designed to minimize 
        incidents of mishandled baggage.
    ``(e) Small Air Carrier Exception.--This section does not apply to 
an air carrier that operates no civil aircraft designed to have a 
maximum passenger seating capacity of more than 30 passengers.''.
    (b) Civil Penalty.--Section 46301(a)(7) is amended by striking 
``40127 or 41712'' and inserting ``40127, 41712, 41722, or 41723''.
    (c) Conforming Amendment.--The chapter analysis for chapter 417 of 
title 49, United States Code, is amended by inserting after the item 
relating to section 41721 the following:

``41722. Airline passengers' right to know.
``41723. Enforcement and enhancement of airline passenger service 
                            commitments.''.

SEC. 4. REQUIRED ACTION BY SECRETARY OF TRANSPORTATION.

    (a) Uniform Minimum Check-In Time; Baggage Statistics; Bumping 
Compensation.--Within 6 months after the date of enactment of this Act, 
the Secretary of Transportation shall--
            (1) establish a uniform check-in deadline and require air 
        carriers to disclose, both in their contracts of carriage and 
        on ticket jackets, their policies on how those deadlines apply 
        to passengers making connections;
            (2) revise the Department of Transportation's method for 
        calculating and reporting the rate of mishandled baggage for 
        air carriers to reflect the reporting requirements of section 
        41722(h) of title 49, United States Code; and
            (3) revise the Department of Transportation's Regulation 
        (14 C.F.R. 250.5) governing the amount of denied boarding 
        compensation for passengers denied boarding involuntarily to 
        increase the maximum amount thereof.
    (b) Review of Regulations.--
            (1) In general.--Within 1 year after the date of enactment 
        of this Act, the Secretary shall complete a thorough review of 
        the Department of Transportation's regulations that relate to 
        air carriers' treatment of customers, and make such 
        modifications as may be necessary or appropriate to ensure the 
        enforceability of those regulations and the provisions of this 
        Act and of title 49, United States Code, that relate to such 
        treatment, or otherwise to promote the purposes of this Act.
            (2) Specific areas of review.--As part of such review and 
        modification, the Secretary shall, to the extent necessary or 
        appropriate--
                    (A) modify existing regulations to reflect this Act 
                and sections 41722 and 41723 of title 49, United States 
                Code;
                    (B) modify existing regulations to the extent 
                necessary to ensure that they are sufficiently clear 
                and specific to be enforceable;
                    (C) establish minimum standards, compliance with 
                which can be measured quantitatively, of air carrier 
                performance with respect to customer service issues 
                addressed by the Department of Transportation 
                regulations or the Airline Customer Service Commitment 
                executed by the Air Transport Association and 14 of its 
                member airlines on June 17, 1999;
                    (D) address the manner in which the Department of 
                Transportation regulations should treat customer 
                service commitments that relate to actions occurring 
                prior to the purchase of a ticket, such as the 
                commitment to offer the lowest available fare, and 
                whether such the inclusion of such commitments in the 
                contract of carriage creates an enforceable obligation 
                prior to the purchase of a ticket;
                    (E) restrict the ability of air carriers to include 
                provisions in the contract of carriage restricting a 
                passenger's choice of forum in the event of a legal 
                dispute; and
                    (F) require each air carrier to report information 
                to Department of Transportation on complaints submitted 
                to the air carrier, and modify the reporting of 
                complaints in the Department of Transportation's 
                monthly customer service reports, so those reports will 
                reflect complaints submitted to air carriers as well as 
                complaints submitted to the Department.
            (3) Expedited procedure.--Within 1 year after the date of 
        enactment of this Act, the Secretary shall complete all actions 
        necessary to establish regulations to implement the 
        requirements of this subsection.

SEC. 5. IMPROVED ENFORCEMENT OF AIR PASSENGER RIGHTS.

    (a) Use of Authorized Funds.--In utilizing the funds authorized by 
section 223 of the Wendell H. Ford Aviation Investment and Reform Act 
for the 21st Century for the purpose of enforcing the rights of air 
travelers, the Secretary of Transportation shall give priority to the 
areas identified by the Inspector General of the Department of 
Transportation as needing improvement in Report No. AV-2001-020, 
submitted to the Congress on February 12, 2001.
    (b) Secretary Required To Consult the Secretary's Inspector 
General.--The Secretary of Transportation, in carrying out this Act and 
the provisions of section 41722 and 41723 of title 49, United States 
Code, shall consult with the Inspector General of the Department of 
Transportation.
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