ASTA: Final FAA Reauthorization Bill Includes ‘Discouraging Setbacks’ for Advisors

The Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) this week issued its Final FAA Reauthorization Bill, a bipartisan deal that authorizes more than would fund the FAA and guide air travel policy through 2028 (the current FAA authorization expires on May 10).  

ASTA had worked throughout the process to push travel advisor-centric priorities, and while there are some victories for ASTA in the bill, the association said this week that there are some “discouraging setbacks” in the language.

Most notably, there is some final language that would make travel agencies the “merchant of record” for air ticket sales, meaning that they would be on the hook for providing ticket refunds regardless of whether or not they are actually in possession of the funds. While the House’s version of the bill did not put the burden on advisors, the final rule issued this week did.

“We were thankful when the House originally recognized this important distinction,” Zane Kerby, ASTA president and CEO said. “Unfortunately, the final compromise between the House and Senate kicks this issue back to a DOT that has shown a clear lack of understanding how travel agencies book air travel.”

It’s not an endless issue for advisors. While the new rules will go into effect in six months, the final bill requires the DOT to issue regulations within one year that would force airlines to transfer funds to ticket agents in those cases where the agent is obligated to refund the consumer. That still leaves six months where advisors will be vulnerable to “preventable and undo financial stress.”

Outside of that, there are some wins in the FAA for the trade, including streamlining offline disclosures surrounding air travel, something that ASTA championed in the House bill. 

“This will reduce frustration with the air ticket purchase process and lessen the unnecessary burdens on our members’ business operations while keeping critical consumer protection intact,” Kerby added.

There’s also the establishment of a new Passenger Experience Advisory Committee within the DOT that will “advise the Secretary and the FAA Administrator on improving the passenger experience in air transportation customer service.” ASTA says that ticket agents will have a seat on the committee.

Aside from the agency-specific language, the FAA reauthorization also includes some provisions that will impact the consumer experience in air travel. 

Some of it has to do with maintaining a healthy future for the air travel industry—hiring more air traffic controllers, creating a development program to recruit and train aviation professionals, and increasing cockpit voice recording—while other points impact consumers directly.

One provision requires the DOT to establish a policy directing certain airlines to seat a young child younger than 14 years old) next to an accompanying adult if adjacent seats in the same class of service are available without charging an additional fee.

The bill also partially addresses bad airline behavior by forcing an airline to provide some kind of self-defense training for crew members and give gate and check-in agents some legal protection against attacks from consumers. 

Some other long-rumored changes were not included in the bill, such as a raising of the pilot retirement age from 65 to 67 and  mandating minimum seat sizes onboard, though the bill forces the FAA to take a look at it.