Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg announced a new partnership Tuesday with more than a dozen state attorneys general to investigate consumer complaints against airlines.
The partnership sets up a process for state attorney general’s offices to review travelers’ complaints and then pass the baton to the federal Department of Transportation, which could take enforcement action against airlines.
“The support offered by state attorney general’s offices means our ability to protect airline passengers is growing,” Buttigieg said at Denver International Airport, where he addressed the alongside Colorado Attorney General Phil Weiser, a Democrat who is among those who joined the group. the partnership.
The federal-state initiative is the latest step by Mr. Buttigieg to improve protections for air travelers and ensure that airlines are held accountable when they make mistakes. The Department of Transportation has imposed more than $164 million in sanctions against airlines during his tenure, according to the agency. Mr. Buttigieg also urged airlines to seat children with their parents for free and to improve the services they offer to travelers facing long delays or cancellations.
The Department of Transportation said attorneys general in 15 states — California, Colorado, Connecticut, Illinois, Maine, Maryland, Michigan, Nevada, New Hampshire, New York, North Carolina, Oklahoma, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island and Wisconsin — had signed agreements to be part of it. of the partnership.
The attorneys general of the District of Columbia, the Northern Mariana Islands and the U.S. Virgin Islands also joined, the department said, bringing the total number involved to 18. Of those, 16 are Democrats and two Republicans.
Under federal law, states are generally prohibited from enforcing their own consumer protection laws against airlines. State attorneys general have been pushing for federal legislation that would give them the power to take action against airlines, just as they can against companies in other industries.
The new partnership does not grant them this power. Instead, their offices would investigate travelers’ complaints and, if they determine that federal consumer protection rules may have been violated, they could refer the matter to the Department of Transportation under an expedited procedure. . The federal agency would then review the complaint and could take enforcement action.
“The ideal world would be one in which states have formal authority to enforce consumer protection law alongside the Department of Transportation,” Mr. Weiser said. “Congress has failed to act so far, but we do not expect action. »
In a statement, Airlines for America, a trade group representing the nation’s largest air carriers, said it regularly works with the Department of Transportation and state attorneys general to improve travelers’ flying experience.
“We appreciate the role of state attorneys general and their work on behalf of consumers,” the group said, adding that it looked forward to continuing to work with them.
