U.S. House passes Transparent Airfares Act of 2014
The U.S. House of Representatives has passed a bill that would reverse a Department of Transportation (DOT) rule requiring airlines to include taxes in displayed airfares.
The proposed legislation will make fares look about 20% cheaper because the share the federal government and airports’ pocket for taxes and fees will not be included in the advertised price until you are on the checkout page.
The bill passed on Monday by voice vote with bipartisan support; there was no objection raised to passing the legislation. The U.S. Senate would still have to pass the bill and President Barack Obama would have to sign it to officially overturn the DOT rule.
So far there is no comparison bill in the Senate, which is controlled by the Democratic party. However, Sen. Robert Menendez, D-N.J., has introduced legislation that would do the opposite of the House measure. It would turn the current regulations into law, and double to $55,000 daily fines imposed for violating the requirement.
The chief sponsor of the Transparent Airfares Act of 2014 is Bill Shuster, a Republican from Pennsylvania. In a previous article I wrote back in April, I outlined how much United Airlines and Delta have contributed to Shuster’s campaign.
Check out the top 5 contributors to Mr. Shuster’s campaign. Who is he really working for? The people of Pennsylvania and the United States at large or the big airline companies?
Bill Shuster’s Top 5 Contributors, 2013-2014 Campaign Committee
| Contributor | Total | Indivs | PACs |
|---|---|---|---|
| Airlines for America | $16,700 | $6,700 | $10,000 |
| Delta Air Lines | $13,500 | $10,500 | $3,000 |
| American Trucking Assns | $12,500 | $2,500 | $10,000 |
| Nossaman LLP | $12,000 | $7,000 | $5,000 |
| United Continental Holdings | $12,000 | $2,000 | $10,000 |
Bill Shuster’s Top 5 Industries, 2013 – 2014, Campaign Committee
| Industry | Total | Indivs | PACs |
|---|---|---|---|
| Air Transport | $125,600 | $32,100 | $93,500 |
| Lawyers/Law Firms | $99,500 | $28,000 | $71,500 |
| Construction Services | $94,950 | $39,700 | $55,250 |
| Building Materials & Equipment | $89,750 | $25,250 | $64,500 |
| Oil & Gas | $89,600 | $12,500 | $77,100 |
*Charts courtesy of OpenSecrets.org
And of course Airlines for America agree with Mr. Shuster, look how much they have contributed to his campaign.
I remember a few years ago airlines would advertise flights to Europe and Asia for like $300 round trip but once you got to the last page to pay, the price increased to $900. Why? because they added the taxes & fees that they weren’t required to post in the advertisement that you saw the “$300” quote on.
Don’t forget to enter for a chance to win two (2) United Club one-time passes.
What garbage.
Anti-transparent Fares Act? I hope this is DOA.
Bill Shuster = piece of shit.
Has anyone read why there was not any objection on the floor i.e. from democrats in the house? I know BTC launched a public information campaign about this & encouraged constituents to call various house offices. I would also be curious how the sponsor is defending this bill which does not appear to have many supporters outside of the airlines.
I tried to do some research last night when I wrote the post. I couldn’t find whether the President and the Senate support the bill or not. Though for some reason I remember seeing that President Obama was against the bill in April when I first wrote about it, but can’t remember where I read that :l
I just wrote to my two Senators and urged them to vote against this bill. Don’t know if it will help but at least it’s something.
The whole argument from airlines is ‘why should we have to display all-in pricing when other industries don’t’ and they have a point. But going backwards is not the answer, they should be spending their money to get legislation drawn up to bring these other industries (car rentals, hotels, retail stores, etc.) to the same standard. That would move the US forward to being more consumer-friendly, rather than taking us backwards to where we were, the way the airlines and their lobbyists want it to be.
The reason there was no Democratic oppositions is that it would do no good. The situation in Washington is so poisoned that the two sides couldn’t agree save their own lives, much less look out for the American people.
Sadly, this is another example of how my beloved Conservative Republicans have abandoned the People in favor of the corporate contributors. It’s enough to make you vote Democrat. Well, almost 🙂