Airlines experiencing delays on disclosure rule

Federal regulators are again delaying a rule that would require airlines to be more transparent about the baggage and other miscellaneous fees they charge passengers.

The Department of Transportation announced the transparency rule in May aimed at disclosing how much money airlines charge customers for services other than the flight itself.

But the agency said Wednesday it is reopening the comment period, pushing the deadline back for a second time in what is becoming an increasingly bitter fight between transparency advocates and industry groups.

{mosads}The department will now give Open Allies for Airfare Transparency and the Travel Technology Association one more week to comment after they complained it was slow to report a meeting it had with industry groups like Airlines for America (A4A), along with several of their member airlines.

The public now has until Sept. 29 to comment. Previously, the comment period was extended from Aug. 21 to Sept. 22.

The rule has drawn the attention of the top senator on transportation issues, who says travelers deserve to know about the extra fees that are being added to the cost of their flight tickets.

Sen. Jay Rockefeller (D-W.Va.) said last month that airlines have generated millions of dollars from the fees and that customers deserved to know how much they are being charged for services that used to be included in normal ticket prices, like checked luggage.  

“Consumer advocates have underscored the importance of price transparency in light of the recent trend where airlines have increasingly been separating from base airfare and specific ‘optional’ fees for services such as carry-on bags and seat selection,” Rockefeller wrote in a letter to top airlines last month.

“Ancillary fees constitute a growing source of revenue for U.S. airlines,” Rockefeller continued. “For example, between 2007 and 2013, total reported baggage fees rose from $464 million to $3.35 billion, and total reservation change fees rose from $915 million to $2.8 billion.”