U.S. DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION ABANDONS PROPOSED CONTROVERSIAL GDS REGULATION

October 5, 2016

The U.S. Department of Transportation (DOT) has quietly removed some of the most controversial elements from its proposed “ Transparency of Airline Ancillary Fees and Other Consumer Protection Issues“, more commonly known as Enhancing Airline Passenger Protections III (EAPP3). EAPP3 initially proposed a variety of new requirements for airlines including disclosing fee information for basic ancillary services, such as advance seat selection or checked luggage, to Global Distribution Systems (GDSs) and including GDSs in the definition of “ticket agent” as it relates to compliance with DOT’s consumer protection rulemaking regime. Many of the proposed requirements were widely criticized by various industry stakeholders.  DOT has indicated that the issues raised in an initial Notice of Proposed Rulemaking “were separated into three proceedings to avoid the risk of any delay in finalizing one issue, resulting in a delay in finalizing other issues.”  Some commentators have suggested that this is a symbolic way for DOT to avoid issuing a highly controversial rule regarding GDSs.  There is no timeline for the issuance of the new regulation.

If you have any questions, please contact Evelyn Sahr (esahr@eckertseamans.com, 202-659-6622) or Drew Derco (dderco@eckertseamans.com, 202-659-6665).

Share This Post

Author