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## P 4: Sb June 19, 2013 THE SECRETARY OF TRANSPORTATION

WASHINGTON, D.C. 20590

Mr. Doug Lavin Regional Vice President forNorth America International Air Transport Association 1201 FStreet, NW., Suite 650 Washington, DC 20004

DearMr. Lavin:

InMay 2012, Iestablished an Advisory Committee on Aviation Consumer Protection to advise
me on airline customer service improvements. The Committee, which includes one representative each ofairlines, airports, consumers and State governments, submitted recommendations to me on awide range ofaviation consumer issues. Ihave enclosed acopy of my report to Congress that includes those recommendations and our plans to implement them.

Ianl seeking your assistance in implementing the recommendations related totravelers with disabilities; discrimination by air carriers on thebasis ofrace, religion, national origin or gender; and greater clarity ofcontract tcrms incarrier contracts ofcarriagc and customer service plans. I
amcommitted to improving acccss to our airtransportation system, and ensuring that all passengers reccive the respect they descrve before, aftcr and during thcir Hight.
With respect totravelcrs with disabilities, the Committee recommended that Iencourage airlines and airports totake any voluntary steps that they believe will result in abetter travel experience fortravelers with disabilities, including working with the Transportation Security Administration (TSA) to ensure that there are no security requirements prcventing the timely return of passengers' wheelehairs so passengers may use their own specially made wheelchairs during lengthy layovers. Accordingly, Iaskyou toremind your member carriers oftheir obligation under the Air Carrier Access Act and the Department's implementing regulation toprovide nondiscriminatory service and access to airtransportation to individuals with disabilities. Ialso ask that you urge your member carriers towork with airports and TSA to ensure that passengers who are dependent on their specially made wheelchairs that arebeing carried inthe cargo compartment can use them during lengthy airport layovers. The Department's disability regulation requires airlines to provide forthe checking and timely return ofpassengers' wheelchairs so that passengers may use their own equipment tothe extent possible, except where this practice would be inconsistent with Federal regulations governing transportation security. Inaddition, ifthere are any voluntary steps that your member carriers can take that they believe will remove additional barriers encountered by passengers with disabilities when they travel, Iask that you strongly encourage them to do so.2

The Committee also recommended that Iremind airlines oftheir obligation to avoid discrimination on the basis ofrace, religion, national origin, or gender and encourage carriers to stress this obligation intheir initial and recurring personnel training. Therefore, 1ask you to remind your member carriers ofthe various Federal statutes that prohibit unlawful discrimination against airtravelers because oftheir race, color, religion, ethnicity, national origin, or sex (49 U.S.C. 

## gg 40127 and 413(0).

Itwould be helpful ifyou also emphasize toyour member carriers the benefits ofproviding initial and recurrent civil rights training to carrier employees and contractors, particularly pilots, flight attendants and other airline customer contact personnel who may have arole in safety or security determinations affecting the air transportation system. Inaddition to covering Federal anti-discrimination statutes and guidance intheir training materials, airlines may also wish to consider including information pertaining to cultural awareness and sensitivity issues.
The Committee also suggested that the Department work with the airlines to survey how the airlines define certain terms frequently used in airlines' contracts ofcarriage and customer service plans. Ihave asked the Department's Office ofAviation Enforcement and Proceedings toestablish an industry working group to identify, define, and explain the terms commonly used incontracts ofcarriage and customer service plans. Samuel Podberesky, the Assistant General Counsel, will be contacting you shortly to ask forarecommendation on working group members.
Thank you forworking with us inour efforts to implement the Committee's recommendations. Iam confident your members' effo will help improve consumer protection i ur air transportation system.

Ray LaHood

EnclosureReport on

Recommendations ofthe Advisory Committee on Aviation Consumer Protection As Required by Public Law 112-95, Section 411

Overview
Section 411 ofthe FAA Modernization and Reform Act of2012 (Pub. L. 112-95, 126 Stat. II (2012» mandates the establishment ofan advisory committee forthe purpose ofadvising the Secretary ofTransportation on airline customer service improvements. By statute, this Committee must consist offour members--one representative each ofairlines, airports, non-profit public interest groups, and State and local governments. Itischarged with providing recommendations tothe Secretary forimproving existing aviation consumer protection programs and forestablishing new ones, ifneeded. The Act also requires the Secretary to submit two reports to Congress on the Committee's recommendations-the first report isdue no later than February 1,2013, and the second report isdue no later than February 1,2014.
As required bythe Act, on May 24, 2012, Secretary Ray LaHood announced the creation ofan Advisory Committee on Aviation Consumer Protection to advise him incarrying out activities related to airline customer service improvements. He selected as members ofthe Committee four individuals who have demonstrated experience indealing with consumer protection matters. They are: (I) Lisa Madigan, Attorney General of 1l1inois,who was also chosen to be the Committee chairperson; (2) David Berg, Senior Vice President, General Counsel and Corporate Secretary for Airlines for America; (3) Deborah Ale-Flint, Oakland International Airport's Director ofAviation; and (4) Charles Leocha, founder and Director ofthe Consumer Travel Alliance. The Secretary tasked the Committee members with providing him their first set ofrecommendations no later than October 15,2012, and their second set of recommendations no later than October IS, 2013.
On October 22, 2012, the Committee submitted its first setofrecommendations to the Secretary
on awide range ofaviation consumer issues including service to passengers with disabilities, discrimination based on race and religion, consumer complaints, ancillary fees, and disclosures by online travel agencies and other agents as towhich carriers' services they sell. Prior to arriving atthese recommendations, the Committee held three public meetings and heard from members ofthe public and organizations representing airlines, travel agents, airport operators, state and local governments, and consumer and other public interest groups. Records relating to the advisory committee, including atranscript and minutes ofits meetings and its full recommendation report are contained inthe Department's docket. See Docket No. DOT-OST2012-0087.Page 

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This isthe Department's first report to Congress on the recommendations ofthe Advisory Committee on Aviation Consumer Protection. This report summarizes the recommendations of the Committee, describes the Department's efforts and plans to implement these recommendations, and provides the reasons fornot implementing certain recommendations immediately and intheir entirety.
Recommendations ofthe Committee
The principal recommendations made bythe Committee related to (1) travelers with disabilities; (2)discrimination by air carriers on the basis ofrace, religion, national origin, or gender; (3) the handling ofairtravel complaints bythe Department; (4) additional dissemination bythe Department ofinformation on consumer rights; (5) greater clarity in contract terms in carrier contracts ofcarriage and customer service plans; (6) transparency in airline pricing; (7) disclosures by travel agents; and (8) additional reporting ofon-time performance by air carriers. Each recommendation and the steps the Department istaking inresponse, is addressed below.


### 1. Travelers

witll Disabilities

Recommendation: DOT should: (I) encourage airlines and airports to take any voluntary steps that they believe will result in abetter travel experience fortravelers with disabilities; (2) encourage airline and airport personnel towork with the Transportation Security Administration (TSA) to develop aplan to assist travelers who are unable to sit during lengthy layovers without their specially made wheelchairs; (3) work with airlines and airports tomake their kiosks and Web sites accessible to travelers with disabilities; and (4) require airports and airlines to ensure appropriate access to service animal relief areas in airports where practicable. Response: We concur with the recommendation to encourage airlines and airports to make the travel experience better fortravelers with disabilities and the recommendation to encourage them to work with TSA to ensure timely return ofpassengers' wheelchairs to enable passengers to use their own wheelchairs during lengthy layovers. To implement these recommendations, within 30 days ofthe date ofthis report, the Secretary will send aletter to U.S. and foreign air carrier associations asking the associations toremind their member carriers oftheir obligations under the Department's rule concerning air travelers with disabilities toprovide individuals with disabilities nondiscriminatory service and access to airtransportation. The Secretary will also reference the existing requirement forcarriers to provide forthe checking and timely return of passengers' wheelchairs so that passengers may use their own equipment to the extent possible except where this practice would be inconsistent with Federal regulations governing transportation security, and he will urge airlines towork with airports and TSA to ensure that passengers who are dependent on their specially-made wheelchairs can use them during lengthy airport layovers.

We also concur with the recommendation towork with airlines and airports to make their kiosks and Web sites accessible and ensure appropriate access to service animal relief areas, and asthe Committee noted, rulemakings on these issues are already underway (RIN 210S-AD96, and RIN 2105-AD91). The Department published a supplemental notice ofproposed rulemaking (NPRM)

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that proposed torequire airport and airline automated kiosks and airline Web sites to be accessible to passengers with disabilities such as passengers who are blind orhave low vision. The Department also published an NPRM that solicited public comments on whether the Department should require airports to locate aminimum ofone service animal relief area per terminal inside the "sterile area" between the TSA security checkpoint and the gate area. The Department is working to finalize these rules as soon as possible.


### 2. Discrimination BasedonRace, Religion, National OriginorGender

Recommendation: DOT should remind the airlines oftheir obligation to avoid discrimination on the basis ofrace, religion, national origin, or gender and should encourage carriers to stress this obligation intheir initial and recurring personnel training. Proposed Response: We concur. The letter that will be sent to carrier associations as described inthe Travelers with Disabilities response above will also askthat they remind carriers ofthe various Federal statutes that prohibit unlawful discrimination against air travelers because of their race, color, religion, ethnicity, national origin, or sex (49 U.S.C. ~~40127 and 41310) and stress the benefits oftraining personnel to ensure that allpersons are provided equal protection of the laws and no person is subjected to unlawful discrimination when traveling.


### J. ConsumerAir TravelComplaints

Recommendation: DOT should improve its informal air travel consumer complaint resolution process by providing more information to consumers about their complaint. Inorder to help
consumers better understand the status and resolution oftheir complaint, the Committee recommends the following specific steps.

I. DOT should provide contact information forthe analyst handling the complaint and indicate that the analyst isthe person the consumer can contact with questions about the status ofthe complaint.

2. DOT should outline the complaint process to consumers and address other material facts (e.g., whether complaint involves aregulated area, whether investigation will be conducted, whether complaint has been forwarded to airline). Response: We generally concur inthese recommendations. No later than 30 days after the date ofthis report, the Department will begin to revise its complaint handling process. Itwill amend its standard letters acknowledging receipt ofairline service complaints, which are usually sent to
consumers the same day acomplaint isentered into itstracking system, so they explain that an analyst will be assigned to work onthe case shortly and provide the office's consumer contact telephone number to reach the analyst. Assurances will also be provided in the letters that telephone calls will be returned bythe analyst within one business day. The acknowledgement letters will also be revised to better outline the complaint process for consumers. The acknowledgement letters will not include the specific contact information forthe analyst handling the complaint as doing this would result inadelay in sending such letters to complainants and would not be beneficial to consumers. The changes that we are making tothePug" 

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acknowledgement letters provide the new information recommended by the Committee and would still enable consumers to easily and quickly reach the analyst handling their complaint.


### 4. Enhanced Information aboutAir TravelConsumerRights

Recommendation: DOT should place its guidance on consumer rights and related FAQs on its website in aprominent place so that consumers can better understand their rights and responsibilities as air travelers. Response: We concur inthis recommendation. There will be greater prominence given to guidance on consumer rights on the Department's Web site and the Web site ofits Office of Aviation Enforcement and Proceedings, which isthe office that monitors compliance with and investigates violations ofthe Department's aviation economic, consumer protection, and civil rights requirements. We expect to complete these tasks within 30 days after the date ofthis report.


### 5. Understanding Terms Usedin ContractsofCarriageandCustomer Service Plans

Recommendation: DOT should work with the airlines to survey how the airlines define certain terms frequently used intheir contracts ofcarriage and customer service plans. The Department should place this information on itsWeb site to assist consumers with understanding the terms and conditions oftheir travel. Response: We concur inthis recommendation. Inthe Secretary's letter to U.S. and foreign carrier associations referenced above, we will askthe associations to work with the Office of Aviation Enforcement and Proceedings to identify and then define/explain terms commonly used incontracts ofcarriage and customer service plans. A statement ofthese definitions will then be made available to members ofthe public viathe DOT Web site, and we will encourage carriers topost this information ontheir sites as well. Although the date ofcompletion ofthe work on this recommendation is dependent on airline association cooperation, we believe the task can be completed within 6months after the date ofthis report.


### 6. Transparency inPricing
Recommendation: DOT should ensure transparency inaircarrier pricing. The Committee adopts Recommendation II ofthe Final Report ofthe Future ofAviation Advisory Committee, which urged greater transparency inthe disclosure ofancillary fees. Response: We have initiated arulemaking package (Enhancing Airline Passenger Protections III, RIN 2105-AEII) which may include aprovision seeking comment on whether the Department should require that ancillary fees bedisplayed through all sale channels. The current status ofthis rulemaking can be found atwww.reginfo.gov. We note that implementation ofthis recommendation is subject to rulemaking procedures that preclude us from prejudging the outcome ofthe rulemaking process.

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7. Ticket

AgentDisclosures

Recommendation: DOT should require all ticket agents, including online ticket agents, to disclose the fact that they do not offer for sale all airlines' tickets, ifthat is the case, and that additional airlines may serve the route being searched. All ticket agents, including online ticket agents, should make this disclosure clearly and conspicuously, so that consumers know they may need to search elsewhere ifthey want tofind out all available travel options. Response: We have initiated arulemaking package (Enhancing Airline Passenger Protections III, RIN 210S-AEll) which may include aprovision seeking comment on whether the Department should require all ticket agents, including online ticket agents, to disclose the fact that they do not offer for sale all airlines' tickets. The current status ofthis rulemaking can be found atwww.reginfo.gov. We note that implementation ofthis recommendation-is subject to rulemaking procedures that preclude us from prejudging the outcome ofthe rulemaking process. 

### 8. On-TimePerformanceReporting/orAllAirlines Recommendation: DOT should mandate that data be reported to the agency's Bureau of Transportation Statistics for all flights and airlines, as opposed to only those that account for 1percent ofdomestic scheduled passenger revenue. Response: We have initiated arulemaking package (Enhancing Airline Passenger Protections Ill, RIN 210S-AEll) which may include aprovision seeking comment on whether the Department expand the on time performance "reporting carrier" pool to include smaller carriers. The current status ofthis rulemaking can be found atwww.reginfo.gov. We note that implementation ofthis recommendation is subject to rulemaking procedures that preclude us from prejudging the outcome ofthe rulemaking process.