I 

116TH CONGRESS 

1ST SESSION H. R. 4489 

To prohibit unfair and deceptive advertising of rates for hotel rooms and 

other places of short-term lodging. 

IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 

SEPTEMBER 25, 2019 

Ms. JOHNSON of Texas (for herself, Mr. FORTENBERRY, and Ms. BASS) introduced the following bill; which was referred to the Committee on Energy 

and Commerce 

A BILL 

To prohibit unfair and deceptive advertising of rates for 

hotel rooms and other places of short-term lodging. 

1 Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa2 tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, 

3 SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE. 

4 This Act may be cited as the ‘‘Hotel Advertising 

5 Transparency Act of 2019’’. 

6 SEC. 2. FINDINGS. 

7 Congress makes the following findings: 

8 (1) As of the day before the date of the enact9 ment of this Act, hotel rooms and other places of 

10 lodging are often advertised at a rate and later in 


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1 the buying process mandatory fees are disclosed that 

2 were not included in the advertised room rate. 

3 (2) The mandatory fees described in paragraph 

4 (1) are sometimes called by names such as ‘‘resort 

5 fees’’, ‘‘cleaning fees’’, or ‘‘facility fees’’ and they are 

6 all mandatory and charged by a place of short-term 

7 lodging in addition to advertised room rates. 

8 (3) The number of short-term lodging facilities 

9 that charged mandatory resort fees is growing. 

10 (4) Advertising that does not reflect the true 

11 mandatory cost of a stay at a place of short-term 

12 lodging is deceptive. 

13 (5) The Federal Trade Commission has author14 ity under section 5 of the Federal Trade Commis15 sion Act (15 U.S.C. 45) to regulate and prohibit un16 fair or deceptive acts or practices in or affecting 

17 commerce. 

18 (6) In 2012 and 2013, the Federal Trade Com19 mission exercised its authority under that section 5 

20 to issue warning letters to 35 hotel operators and 11 

21 online travel agents. In those letters, the Commis22 sion cautioned hotel operators and online travel 

23 agents that mandatory resort fees could confuse con24 sumers in violation of section 5(a)(2) of such Act 

25 (15 U.S.C. 45(a)(2)). 


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1 (7) In 2017, an economist at the Federal Trade 

2 Commission published an issue paper that found 

3 that forcing consumers to click through additional 

4 webpages to see a hotel’s resort fee increases the 

5 time spent searching and learning the hotel’s price, 

6 and went on to state the following: ‘‘Separating the 

7 room rate from the resort fee increases the cognitive 

8 costs of remembering the hotel’s price. When it be9 comes more costly to search and evaluate an addi10 tional hotel, a consumer’s choice is either to incur 

11 higher total search and cognitive costs or to make an 

12 incomplete, less informed decision that may result in 

13 a more costly room, or both.’’ 

14 SEC. 3. PROHIBITION ON UNFAIR AND DECEPTIVE ADVER15 TISING OF HOTEL ROOM RATES. 

16 (a) PROHIBITION.—No person with respect to whom 

17 the Federal Trade Commission is empowered under sec18 tion 5(a)(2) of the Federal Trade Commission Act (15 

19 U.S.C. 45(a)(2)) may advertise in interstate commerce a 

20 rate for a place of short-term lodging that does not include 

21 all required fees, excluding taxes and fees imposed by a 

22 government. 

23 (b) ENFORCEMENT BY FEDERAL TRADE COMMIS24 SION.— 


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1 (1) UNFAIR OR DECEPTIVE ACTS OR PRAC2 TICES.—A violation of subsection (a) by a person 

3 subject to such subsection shall be treated as a viola4 tion of a rule defining an unfair or deceptive act or 

5 practice prescribed under section 18(a)(1)(B) of the 

6 Federal Trade Commission Act (15 U.S.C. 

7 57a(a)(1)(B)). 

8 (2) POWERS OF COMMISSION.— 

9 (A) IN GENERAL.—The Federal Trade 

10 Commission shall enforce this section in the 

11 same manner, by the same means, and with the 

12 same jurisdiction, powers, and duties as though 

13 all applicable terms and provisions of the Fed14 eral Trade Commission Act (15 U.S.C. 41 et 

15 seq.) were incorporated into and made a part of 

16 this Act. Any person who violates this section 

17 shall be subject to the penalties and entitled to 

18 the privileges and immunities provided in the 

19 Federal Trade Commission Act (15 U.S.C. 41 

20 et seq.). 

21 (B) RULEMAKING.— 

22 (i) IN GENERAL.—The Commission 

23 may promulgate such rules as the Commis24 sion considers appropriate to enforce this 

25 section. 


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1 (ii) PROCEDURES.—The Commission 

2 shall carry out any rulemaking under 

3 clause (i) in accordance with section 553 of 

4 title 5, United States Code. 

5 (c) ENFORCEMENT BY STATES.— 

6 (1) IN GENERAL.—In any case in which the at7 torney general of a State has reason to believe that 

8 an interest of the residents of the State has been or 

9 is threatened or adversely affected by the engage10 ment of any person subject to subsection (a) in a 

11 practice that violates such subsection, the attorney 

12 general of the State may, as parens patriae, bring 

13 a civil action on behalf of the residents of the State 

14 in an appropriate district court of the United States 

15 to obtain appropriate relief. 

16 (2) RIGHTS OF FEDERAL TRADE COMMIS17 SION.— 

18 (A) NOTICE TO FEDERAL TRADE COMMIS19 SION.— 

20 (i) IN GENERAL.—Except as provided 

21 in clause (iii), the attorney general of a 

22 State shall notify the Commission in writ23 ing that the attorney general intends to 

24 bring a civil action under paragraph (1) 


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1 before initiating the civil action against a 

2 person subject to subsection (a). 

3 (ii) CONTENTS.—The notification re4 quired by clause (i) with respect to a civil 

5 action shall include a copy of the complaint 

6 to be filed to initiate the civil action. 

7 (iii) EXCEPTION.—If it is not feasible 

8 for the attorney general of a State to pro9 vide the notification required by clause (i) 

10 before initiating a civil action under para11 graph (1), the attorney general shall notify 

12 the Commission immediately upon insti13 tuting the civil action. 

14 (B) INTERVENTION BY FEDERAL TRADE

15 COMMISSION.—The Commission may— 

16 (i) intervene in any civil action 

17 brought by the attorney general of a State 

18 under paragraph (1) against a person de19 scribed in such paragraph; and 

20 (ii) upon intervening— 

21 (I) be heard on all matters aris22 ing in the civil action; and 

23 (II) file petitions for appeal of a 

24 decision in the civil action. 


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1 (3) INVESTIGATORY POWERS.—Nothing in this 

2 subsection may be construed to prevent the attorney 

3 general of a State from exercising the powers con4 ferred on the attorney general by the laws of the 

5 State to conduct investigations, to administer oaths 

6 or affirmations, or to compel the attendance of wit7 nesses or the production of documentary or other 

8 evidence. 

9 (4) EFFECT ON STATE COURT PROCEEDINGS.— 

10 Nothing in this subsection shall be construed to pro11 hibit an authorized State official from proceeding in 

12 State court on the basis of an alleged violation of 

13 any general civil or criminal statute of such State. 

14 (5) COORDINATION WITH FEDERAL TRADE

15 COMMISSION.—If the Federal Trade Commission in16 stitutes a civil action or an administrative action 

17 with respect to a violation of subsection (a), the at18 torney general of a State shall coordinate with the 

19 Commission before bringing a civil action under 

20 paragraph (1) against any defendant named in the 

21 complaint of the Commission for the violation with 

22 respect to which the Commission instituted such ac23 tion. 

24 (6) VENUE; SERVICE OF PROCESS.— 


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1 (A) VENUE.—Any action brought under 

2 paragraph (1) may be brought in— 

3 (i) the district court of the United 

4 States that meets applicable requirements 

5 relating to venue under section 1391 of 

6 title 28, United States Code; or 

7 (ii) another court of competent juris8 diction. 

9 (B) SERVICE OF PROCESS.—In an action 

10 brought under paragraph (1), process may be 

11 served in any district in which the defendant— 

12 (i) is an inhabitant; or 

13 (ii) may be found. 

14 (7) ACTIONS BY OTHER STATE OFFICIALS.— 

15 (A) IN GENERAL.—In addition to civil ac16 tions brought by attorneys general under para17 graph (1), any other officer of a State who is 

18 authorized by the State to do so may bring a 

19 civil action under paragraph (1), subject to the 

20 same requirements and limitations that apply 

21 under this subsection to civil actions brought by 

22 attorneys general. 

23 (B) SAVINGS PROVISION.—Nothing in this 

24 subsection may be construed to prohibit an au25 thorized official of a State from initiating or 


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1 continuing any proceeding in a court of the 

2 State for a violation of any civil or criminal law 

3 of the State. 

4 (d) DEFINITIONS.—As used in this Act— 

5 (1) the term ‘‘place of short-term lodging’’ 

6 means a hotel, motel, inn, or other place of lodging 

7 that advertises at a rate that is a nightly, hourly, or 

8 weekly rate; and 

9 (2) the term ‘‘State’’ includes any territory of 

10 the United States, the District of Columbia, and the 

11 Commonwealth of Puerto Rico. 

12 (e) EFFECTIVE DATE.—Subsection (a) shall take ef13 fect on the date that is 30 days after the date of enact14 ment of this Act. 

Æ 


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