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Posted December 2, 2020

Final Rule - Traveling by Air with Service Animals. This final rule amends the Department’s Air Carrier Access Act (ACAA) regulation on the transport of service animals by air.  This final rule is intended to ensure that our air transportation system is safe for the traveling public and accessible to individuals with disabilities.

Posted November 27,  2020

Final Rule - Defining Unfair or Deceptive Practices.  The Department has the statutory authority to protect airline consumers from unfair or deceptive practices by airlines or ticket agents, and most of its aviation consumer protections regulations are based on that authority.  However, the terms unfair or deceptive are not defined in the statute.  This rule defines those terms and is intended to provide regulated entities and other stakeholders clarity and certainty about what constitutes unfair or deceptive practices and the Department’s process for making such determinations in the context of aviation consumer protection rulemaking and enforcement actions.

Posted August 25, 2020

September 24, 2020 Meeting of the Aviation Consumer Protection Advisory Committee.  The next public meeting of the Aviation Consumer Protection Advisory Committee (ACPAC) will be held virtually on September 24, 2020.  The ACPAC members will discuss and deliberate on three topics: (1) the report of the National In-Flight Sexual Misconduct Task Force (Task Force), an ACPAC subcommittee; (2) transparency of airline ancillary service fees; and (3) involuntary changes to travel itineraries.  Virtual attendance is open to the public, to register please email the Department at ACPAC@dot.gov.

The Department’s press release announcing the meeting is available here.

Posted May 12, 2020

Frequently Asked Questions Regarding Airline Ticket Refunds Given the Unprecedented Impact of the COVID-19 Public Health Emergency on Air Travel - The Department’s Office of Aviation Enforcement and Proceedings (Aviation Enforcement Office), a unit within the Office of the General Counsel, is providing answers to some of the most common questions about refunds to help consumers understand their rights and to ensure airlines and ticket agents are complying with aviation consumer protection requirements.

Posted April 29, 2020

Notice Regarding Current Administration and Enforcement of The Essential Air Service Program - The U.S. Department of Transportation Office of the Assistant Secretary for Aviation and International Affairs is providing notice that it will authorize subsidy payments for certain non-completed flights under the Essential Air Service (EAS) Program given the significant reduction in passenger demand caused by the Coronavirus Disease 2019 (COVID-19) public health emergency and the financial impact on air carriers.

Posted April 23, 2020

Defining Unfair or Deceptive Practices - Grant of Request for Extension of Comment Period -  The U.S. Department of Transportation has determined that an extension of the comment period for an additional 30 days is appropriate.

Posted April 17, 2020

Notice - Reporting of Causes of Flight Delays and Cancellations Given The Unprecedented Impact Of The COVID-19 Public Health Emergency On Air Travel.

Posted April 7, 2020

Denial of Request for Extension of Comment Period - Traveling by Air with Service Animals NPRM - The U.S. Department of Transportation is denying the requests to extend the comment period on the Department’s Notice of Proposed Rulemaking (NPRM) on Traveling by Air with Service Animals.  The NPRM was published in the Federal Register on February 5, 2020.

Posted April 3, 2020

Enforcement Notice Regarding Refunds by Carriers Given the Unprecedented Impact of the COVID-19 Public Health Emergency on Air Travel - The U.S. Department of Transportation’s Office of Aviation Enforcement and Proceedings, a unit within the Office of the General Counsel, is issuing this notice to remind the traveling public and U.S. and foreign carriers that passengers should be refunded promptly when their scheduled flights are cancelled or significantly delayed.  Although the COVID-19 public health emergency has had an unprecedented impact on air travel, the airlines’ obligation to refund passengers for cancelled or significantly delayed flights remains unchanged.

Posted March 16, 2020

A Report on Sexual Misconduct on Commercial Flights by the National In-Flight Sexual Misconduct Task Force  -  On March 16, 2020, the Task Force submitted a report to the Department’s Aviation Consumer Protection Advisory Committee on awareness, training, reporting, and data collection regarding incidents of sexual misconduct by passengers onboard commercial aircraft.

Posted March 2, 2020

Enforcement Notice Regarding Denying Boarding by Airlines of Individuals Suspected of Having Coronavirus - The U.S. Department of Transportation’s Office of Aviation Enforcement and Proceedings’ (Enforcement Office), a unit within the Office of the General Counsel, regulates whether airlines may limit access to transportation because a passenger has a communicable disease.  The Enforcement Office is issuing this notice to advise the public that airlines may screen passengers during the check-in and boarding process for flights to the United States from countries with travel health notices issued by the U.S. Centers for Disease and Control Prevention (CDC) stemming from an outbreak of the 2019 Novel Coronavirus (COVID-19).  If passengers seeking to travel from these countries to the United States display symptoms of COVID-19, airlines may deny boarding to them under certain circumstances.  

Posted February 20, 2020

Notice of Proposed Rulemaking – Defining Unfair or Deceptive Practices. The Department of Transportation is proposing to amend its regulations regarding unfair or deceptive practices in aviation consumer protection. This rulemaking would define unfair and deceptive practices by airlines and ticket agents in air transportation. This rulemaking would also amend and clarify the procedures that the Department would follow when engaging in aviation consumer protection rulemaking and enforcement based on its authority to prohibit unfair or deceptive practices.

The comment period closes 60 days from publication of the rulemaking in the Federal Register. Comments can be filed on www.regulations.gov, docket number DOT-OST-2019-0182.

Posted January 22, 2020

Notice of Proposed Rulemaking (NPRM) - Traveling by Air with Service Animals. In the Department’s Traveling by Air with Service Animals Notice of Proposed Rulemaking, the Department proposes the following changes to its current Air Carrier Access Act service animal rule in 14 CFR Part 382: 

• Definition of Service Animal:  The Department proposes to define a service animal as a dog that is individually trained to do work or perform tasks for the benefit of a qualified individual with a disability, including a physical, sensory, psychiatric, intellectual, or other mental disability.  This proposed definition of a service animal is similar to the Department of Justice’s (DOJ) Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) definition of a service animal.

• Emotional Support Animals:  The Department’s proposed rulemaking does not require airlines to recognize emotional support animals as service animals.  Airlines would be permitted to treat emotional support animals, which are not trained to do work or perform a task for the benefit of a qualified individual with a disability, as pets.

• Species:  Under the Department’s proposed rule, airlines would only be required to transport dogs as service animals.  As a result, airlines would no longer be required to accommodate miniature horses, cats, rabbits, birds, and all other service animals that airlines are currently required to transport.   

• Documentation:  Airlines would be permitted to require passengers with a disability traveling with a service animal to complete and submit to the airline the following forms developed by DOT as a condition of transportation: (1) U.S. Department of Transportation Service Animal Air Transportation Health Form, to be completed by a veterinarian in order to certify the animal’s good health; (2) U.S. Department of Transportation Service Animal Air Transportation Behavior and Training Attestation Form, to be completed by the service animal handler in order to attest to the animal’s good behavior; and (3) U.S. Department of Transportation Service Animal Relief Attestation, to be completed by the service animal handler when traveling with a service animal on a flight eight hours or longer in order to verify that the animal has the ability to either not relieve itself, or can relieve itself in a sanitary manner.  Under the Department’s proposal, these three documents would be the only documents that an airline could require from an individual with a disability traveling with a service animal. The DOT forms would include a warning that it would be a Federal crime for a service animal handler to make false statements or representations on these forms to secure disability accommodations. 

• Check-In Requirements:  The Department proposes to allow airlines to require all passengers with a disability traveling with a service animal to check in one-hour before the check-in time for the general public as a condition for travel with a service animal to allow time to process the service animal documentation and observe the animal.  However, the Department also proposes that if an airline imposes the one-hour check-in requirement on passengers traveling with service animals, the airline must designate a location in the airport for these passengers to check-in promptly by a trained agent.

• Number of Service Animals Per Passenger:  The Department’s NPRM proposes to require airlines to accept up to two service animals per passenger for transport on an aircraft.  In order to determine if the animal qualifies as a service animal, airlines are permitted to ask passengers with disabilities if the animal is required to accompany the passenger because of a disability, and what work or task the animal has been trained to perform, but the airline must not ask the passenger the nature of his or her disability, nor are airlines permitted to ask service animals to demonstrate the work or tasks they have been trained to perform.  

• Large Service Animals: The Department proposes to allow airlines to limit service animals based on whether the animal can fit onto the service animal handler’s lap or within the handler’s foot space.  Airlines would be permitted to reject service animals that are too large to fit on these spaces. 

• Control of the Animal:  The Department proposes to continue to permit airlines to require that service animals be harnessed, leashed, tethered or otherwise under the control of its handler at all times in the airport and on the aircraft.  In general, tethering and similar means of controlling an animal that are permitted in the Americans with Disabilities Act context would be reasonable in the context of controlling service animals in the airport and on the aircraft.

• Direct Threat: The Department proposes to continue to allow airlines to refuse to transport a service animal if the animal poses a direct threat to the health or safety of others.  In determining whether to deny transport to a serve animal on the basis that the animal poses a direct threat, the NPRM specifies that airline must make an individualized assessment based on reasonable judgments that relies on the best available objective evidence to ascertain the nature, duration, and severity of the risk; the probability that the potential injury will occur; and whether reasonable modifications will mitigate the risk.

• Breed Restrictions:  The Department proposes to continue prohibiting airlines from imposing breed and other categorical restrictions on service animals.  In the NPRM, the Department proposes explicit language that states that airlines are not permitted to refuse to transport service animals based on breed. 

The comment period closes 60 days after publication in the Federal Register. Comments can be filed on www.regulations.gov, docket number DOT-OST-2018-0068.

Posted January 22, 2020

The Department has published a Notice to inform U.S. and certain foreign air carriers of inflation adjustments to liability limits of air carriers and foreign air carriers under the Montreal Convention. The adjustments affect limits on liability for damages for passenger death or injury, delay in the carriage of passengers, and the loss, delay or damage to baggage or cargo, increasing those limits by nearly 14 percent. This increase became effective on December 28, 2019.

Posted December 16, 2019

Notice of Proposed Rulemaking (NPRM) - Accessible Lavatories on Single-Aisle Aircraft.  The Department of Transportation is proposing to amend its disability regulation.  This NPRM would require airlines that operate new single-aisle aircraft with seating capacity of 125 or more seats to ensure the accessibility of features within the aircraft lavatory, including but not limited to toilet seats, assist handles, faucets, attendant call buttons, and door locks.  The NPRM would also require these airlines to include an on-board wheelchair meeting specific performance standards on such aircraft.  The performance standards are intended to improve the on-board wheelchair’s safety and maneuverability, and permit its entry into the aircraft lavatory. 

In addition, the NPRM proposes training and information requirements that would apply to the airlines’ operations, including hands-on training on the use of the aircraft’s on-board wheelchair, and requirements that airlines make information concerning the accessibility of aircraft lavatories available on the airline’s website, on the aircraft, and upon request to individuals with a disability. 

In the near future, the Department plans to issue an advance notice of proposed rulemaking (ANPRM) to solicit comment and gather information on the costs and benefits of requiring airlines to make lavatories on new single-aisle aircraft larger, equivalent to that currently found on twin-aisle aircraft.  This NPRM does not propose to increase the size of lavatories on single-aisle aircraft.

The comment period closes 60 days after publication in the Federal Register. Comments can be filed on www.regulations.gov, docket number DOT-OST-2019-0180.

Posted October 25, 2019

Notice of Proposed Rulemaking – Tarmac Delay Rule. The Department of Transportation is proposing to amend its tarmac delay regulation. This rulemaking would modify U.S. and foreign air carrier obligations with respect to tarmac delays and conform carrier obligations with respect to departure delays with the changes made to the FAA Extension, Safety, and Security Act of 2016. This rulemaking would also make changes to the notification requirements regarding the status of the tarmac delay and the opportunity to deplane as well as carrier tarmac delay reporting and record retention requirements. The comment period closes on December 24, 2019. Comments can be filed on www.regulations.gov, docket number DOT-OST-2019-0144.

Posted September 20, 2019

Air Carrier Access Act Advisory Committee. U.S. Department of Transportation Secretary Elaine L. Chao today announced the formation of the Air Carrier Access Act Advisory Committee (ACAA Advisory Committee) and the appointment of 19 members.  The ACAA Advisory Committee is being established pursuant to the FAA Reauthorization Act of 2018 (FAA Act).  The Committee’s charter is available online here. 

The ACAA Advisory Committee will advise the Secretary about issues relating to the air travel needs of passengers with disabilities.  It will identify and assess disability-related access barriers encountered by air travelers with disabilities, evaluate the extent to which DOT’s programs and activities are addressing these disability-related access barriers, and recommend actions to improve the air travel experience of passengers with disabilities.  On or before November 20, 2020, the ACAA Advisory Committee will submit a report to the Secretary on the needs of passengers with disabilities in air travel.

The names of the ACAA Advisory Committee members can be found on the Press Release.

Posted September 12, 2019

Air Ambulance and Patient Billing Advisory Committee. U.S. Department of Transportation Secretary Elaine L. Chao today announced the formation of the Air Ambulance and Patient Billing Advisory Committee (AAPB Advisory Committee) and the appointment of 13 members.  The AAPB Advisory Committee is being established pursuant to the FAA Reauthorization Act of 2018 (FAA Act). The Committee’s charter is available online here.

The AAPB Advisory Committee will advise the Secretary about issues relating to air ambulance services and patient billing.  The AAPB Advisory Committee will review options to improve the disclosure of charges and fees for air medical services, better inform consumers of insurance options for such services, and protect consumers from balance billing.  Based on its review, it will make recommendations regarding disclosure of charges and fees for air ambulance services and insurance coverage, as well as consumer protection and enforcement authorities of both the DOT and state authorities, and the prevention of balance billing to consumers.

More information and the list of the AAPB Advisory Committee's members can be found on the Press Release.

Posted August 8, 2019

Final Statement of Enforcement Priorities Regarding Service Animals. The U.S. Department of Transportation is issuing a Final Statement Of Enforcement Priorities Regarding Service Animals to apprise the public of its intended enforcement focus with respect to transportation of service animals in the cabin of aircraft. The Department regulates the transportation of service animals under the Air Carrier Access Act (ACAA) and its implementing regulation, 14 CFR Part 382 (Part 382).  The statement discusses topics such as species/breed restrictions, documentation of service animals, advance notice, and containment of service animals in the cabin.  The statement can be found by clicking the title above, and at regulations.gov in docket number DOT-OST-2018-0067.  A summary of the statement can be found here.

Posted April 2, 2019

The U.S. Department of Transportation's Aviation Consumer Protection Advisory Committee (ACPAC) will hold its first meeting in Washington, DC on April 4, 2019.  The meeting will be live-streamed on April 4, through a link available on the ACPAC’s web site: www.transportation.gov/airconsumer/ACPAC. The first ACPAC meeting will focus on the operation of the National In-Flight Sexual Misconduct Task Force (Task Force), an ACPAC subcommittee; transparency of airline ancillary service fees; and involuntary changes to travel itineraries.  Please click here for the full Press Release.

Posted March 28, 2019

Notice of Proposed Rulemaking - Modernizing Payment of Denied Boarding Compensation. The Department of Transportation is proposing to amend its rule on oversales to allow airlines to use electronic payment medias that are equivalent to cash as an option in lieu of check or cash payment to compensate passengers who are denied boarding involuntarily due to oversales; and allow airlines to provide a mandatory written denied boarding notice in an oversales situation by electronic means upon passengers' consent, in lieu of a paper copy.

Posted March 20, 2019

The U.S. Department of Transportation (DOT) today announced that its newly reestablished Aviation Consumer Protection Advisory Committee (ACPAC) will hold its first meeting in Washington, DC on April 4, 2019. The ACPAC meeting was originally scheduled for January 16, 2019, but was cancelled due to the lapse in funding. The Department is also announcing today its selection of Blane Workie, Assistant General Counsel for the Department’s Office of Aviation Enforcement and Proceedings, to serve as the Aviation Consumer Advocate, a position created by the FAA Reauthorization Act of 2018. Please click here for the full Press Release.

Posted February 15, 2019

Establishment of the National In-Flight Sexual Misconduct Task Force. The U.S. Department of Transportation today announced the establishment of the National In-Flight Sexual Misconduct Task Force (Task Force), a subcommittee of the Department’s Aviation Consumer Protection Advisory Committee (ACPAC).  The Task Force is being established pursuant to the FAA Reauthorization Act of 2018 (FAA Act), signed by President Trump on October 5, 2018.  The 2018 Consolidated Appropriations Act also requested that the Department establish such a Task Force.  More information and the list of the Task Force's members can be found at https://www.transportation.gov/briefing-room/us-department-transportation-names-14-members-national-flight-sexual-misconduct-task

Posted January 10, 2019

On Friday, November 23, 2018, the U.S. Department of Transportation published a notice in the Federal Register announcing a meeting of the Department’s Aviation Consumer Protection Advisory Committee (ACPAC) to take place on Wednesday, January 16, 2019.  See 83 FR 59447.  Due to a lapse in appropriations, the ACPAC meeting scheduled for January 16 is cancelled.  A notice announcing the re-scheduled meeting will be published in the Federal Register at a later date.

Posted December 21, 2018

The U.S. Department of Transportation today announced that it is soliciting applications and nominations for membership on two federal advisory committees on air travel: the Air Carrier Access Act Advisory Committee (ACAA Committee) and the Air Ambulance and Patient Billing Advisory Committee (AAPB Committee).  These committees are mandated by the FAA Reauthorization Act of 2018.

The ACAA Committee will assess barriers to accessible air travel, determine the extent to which DOT is addressing the barriers, recommend improvements, and advise the Secretary on implementing the Air Carrier Access Act. Eligibility requirements and complete instructions on how to apply can be found at www.transportation.gov/airconsumer/ACAA-advisory-committee-solicitation. 

The AAPB Committee will review options to improve the disclosure of charges and fees for air medical services, better inform consumers of insurance options for such services, and protect consumers from balance billing. Following this review, the AAPB Advisory Committee will make recommendations with respect to three general air-ambulance-related areas: (1) the disclosure of charges and fees for air medical services as well as related insurance coverage; (2) the consumer protection and enforcement authorities of the Department of Transportation and state authorities; and (3) the balance billing practices of providers of air medical services. Eligibility requirements and complete instructions on how to apply can be found at www.transportation.gov/airconsumer/AAPB-advisory-committee-solicitation. 

Applications and nominations for both committees must be received on or before January 15, 2019.

Posted November 15, 2018

Aviation Consumer Protection Advisory Committee - Notice of Reestablishment and First Meeting. This notice announces the reestablishment of the Aviation Consumer Protection Advisory Committee (ACPAC), formerly known as the Advisory Committee on Aviation Consumer Protection, as a Federal advisory committee. The Department has also established a National In-Flight Sexual Misconduct Task Force (Task Force) as an ACPAC Subcommittee. The Department anticipates the first meeting of the ACPAC will be held on January 16, 2019, at the U.S. Department of Transportation Headquarters in Washington, D.C. 

Posted November 1, 2018

Enforcement Policy Regarding Reporting of Mishandled Baggage and Wheelchair Data. This notice of enforcement policy advises the public of the manner in which the Office of Aviation Enforcement and Proceedings intends to enforce the requirements in 14 CFR 234.6(b) for large U.S. airlines to report mishandled baggage and wheelchairs and scooters data to the Department for flights on or after January 2019.

Posted October 23, 2018

Enforcement Notice - Airline Reporting of Data on Mishandled Baggage, Wheelchairs, and Scooters. This notice addresses the obligations of large U.S. airlines to report to the Department mishandled baggage, wheelchairs, and scooters data following the enactment of the FAA Reauthorization Act of 2018.

Posted May 16, 2018

Service Animals - Advance Notice of Proposed Rulemaking (ANPRM). The U.S. Department of Transportation is seeking comment on amending its Air Carrier Access Act (ACAA) regulation on transportation of service animals. The Department has heard from the transportation industry, as well as individuals with disabilities, that the current ACAA regulation could be improved to ensure nondiscriminatory access for individuals with disabilities, while simultaneously preventing instances of fraud and ensuring consistency with other Federal regulations. The Department recognizes the integral role that service animals play in the lives of many individuals with disabilities and wants to ensure that individuals with disabilities can continue using their service animals while also helping to ensure that the fraudulent use of other animals not qualified as service animals is deterred and animals that are not trained to behave properly in the public are not accepted for transport as service animals. Comments on the ANPRM must be received within 45 days of the date the notice is published. The ANPRM can be found at www.regulations.gov in docket DOT-OST-2018-0068.

Interim Statement of Enforcement Priorities Regarding Service Animals. The U.S. Department of Transportation is issuing a statement of enforcement priorities to apprise the public of its intended enforcement focus with respect to transportation of service animals in the cabin of aircraft. The Department regulates the transportation of service animals under the Air Carrier Access Act (ACAA) and its implementing regulation, 14 CFR Part 382 (Part 382). The Department seeks comment on this interim statement, and intends to issue a final statement after the close of the comment period. Comments on this interim statement must be received within 15 days of the date the statement is published. The statement can be found at regulations.gov in docket number DOT-OST-2018-0067.