Holiday travelers could face higher costs and fewer rights thanks to Trump’s consumer protection rollbacks
WASHINGTON – Today, Senator Ruben Gallego (D-AZ) and 17 Senate colleagues urged the DOT to reconsider its decision to roll back consumer protections for airline passengers that built on the bipartisan FAA Reauthorization Act. Specifically, Trump’s Department of Transportation (DOT) is rolling back protections created by the Biden administration that would require airlines to compensate passengers for flight delays and cancellations and provide consumers transparent information upfront about the costs of ancillary plane ticket fees. DOT’s actions to roll back these protections would make American families vulnerable to excessive travel costs.
“Last year, Congress acted to protect the flying public from airline-caused disruptions and surprise costs. The law guaranteed the right to a hassle-free refund for passengers when flights are cancelled or significantly delayed regardless of cause,” the senators wrote in a letter to DOT Secretary Sean Duffy. “The law also required airlines to have policies in place to compensate passengers for significant flight disruptions within an airline’s control, and be transparent about fees — such as baggage fees or change fees — that they charge consumers. The regulations recently targeted by the Department build upon the consumer protection framework established under the law.”
“This is a common-sense proposal: when an airline’s mistake imposes unanticipated costs on families, the airline should try to remedy the situation by providing accommodations to consumers and helping cover their costs,” they continued. “By cancelling this rulemaking, the Department is actively foregoing an easy solution to foster consumer confidence and address the problem of unaffordable travel for many families.”
“We urge DOT to reconsider its decision to roll back these important cost-saving protections for the flying public and to implement the bipartisan FAA law requirements as Congress intended. American families deserve transparency in airline pricing and fair compensation for travel disruptions. These cost-saving consumer protections should be strengthened, not weakened,” the senators concluded.
Read the full letter HERE.
10/28/25