A new law signed last month by U.S. President Donald Trump strengthens several traveler protections and introduces worker safeguards.
The Federal Aviation Administration reauthorization bill does not add new rules specifically targeting airline fees, as some consumer advocates had hoped, but it does ban removing passengers who are already seated. The law also authorizes the FAA to set standards for seat dimensions and requires airlines to refund travelers for services they paid for but did not receive.
For airline employees, the bill establishes minimum rest standards for flight attendants and creates a consumer advocate hotline at the FAA so passengers can file complaints more easily.
The legislation includes several passenger-focused provisions: it bans e-cigarette use and cellphone voice calls during flights; allows the FAA to require early boarding accommodations for pregnant passengers and to require strollers be checked; prohibits storing live animals in overhead bins; and gives the FAA authority to investigate whether airlines are citing weather as the cause of delays when other factors are responsible.
Additionally, the law creates an Office of Spaceports within the FAA to address emerging commercial space activities and to assess whether supersonic flights should be permitted in U.S. airspace.