I
106TH CONGRESS
1ST SESSION
H. R. 780
To amend title 49, United States Code, to establish consumer protections
for airline passengers, and for other purposes.
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
FEBRUARY 23, 1999
Mr. DINGELL introduced the following bill; which was referred to the
Committee on Transportation and Infrastructure
A BILL
To amend title 49, United States Code, to establish consumer
protections for airline passengers, and for other purposes.
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa-
tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled,
SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.
This Act may be cited as the ‘‘Passenger Entitlement
and Competition Enhancement Act of 1999’’.
SEC. 2. FINDINGS.
Congress finds that—
(1) airline passenger complaints, as reported by
the Department of Transportation, have increased
substantially and continue to rise;
riers to entry and increase competition in the airline
market, such as slot restrictions and exclusive air-
port gate leases;
(14) of the more than 3,100 domestic air car-
rier slots at the 4 slot-controlled airports in the
United States, known as ‘‘high density airports’’—
(A) fewer than 45 slots are held collectively
by new entrant air carriers; and
(B) foreign carriers hold approximately
twice as many slots as new entrant air carriers;
(15) the Department of Transportation allowed
the established air carriers to retain a large portion
of their slots free-of-charge when the current ‘‘Buy-
Sell Rule’’ was instituted in 1985;
(16) access to slot-controlled airports is crucial
to establishing new air service in the heavily-traveled
eastern and midwestern markets and if carriers are
going to be able to increase services to markets
served by small hub airports and medium hub air-
ports, particularly in the Southeast and Midwest;
and
(17) the National Commission to Ensure a
Strong Competitive Airline Industry recommended
that the Federal Aviation Administration review the
rule that limits operations at high density airports
with the aim of either removing these artificial limits
or raising them to the highest practicable level con-
sistent with safety requirements.
TITLE I—PASSENGER
PROTECTIONS
SEC. 101. AIRLINE PASSENGER PROTECTION.
(a) IN GENERAL.—Subchapter I of chapter 417 of
title 49, United States Code, is amended by adding at the
end the following:
‘‘§ 41716. Air carrier passenger protection
‘‘(a) EMERGENCY PLANS.—
‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—An air carrier shall ensure
access to necessary services and conditions, including
food, water, restroom facilities, and emergency medi-
cal services for all passengers boarded on a flight
segment of the air carrier.
‘‘(2) SUBMITTAL OF PLANS.—The Secretary of
Transportation shall require each air carrier to sub-
mit to the Secretary an emergency plan containing
a detailed description of actions that will be taken
by the carrier to comply with paragraph (1).
‘‘(3) FAILURE TO SUBMIT PLANS.—The Sec-
retary shall suspend the authority of an air carrier
to provide air transportation if the carrier fails to
submit a plan in accordance with paragraph (2).
The suspension shall continue until the carrier sub-
mits the plan.
‘‘(4) REGULATIONS.—Not later than 180 days
after the date of enactment of this Act, the Sec-
retary shall issue final regulations to require plans
under paragraph (2).
‘‘(b) NOTICE OF DELAYS.—An air carrier shall pro-
vide to each passenger on a flight segment of the carrier
sufficient and accurate notice, based on information rea-
sonably available to the carrier, of any potential or actual
significant delays in the departure or arrival of the flight
segment. Whenever possible, such notice shall be provided
before the passenger boards an aircraft.
‘‘(c) 
EXCESSIVE
DEPARTURE
AND
ARRIVAL
DELAY.—
‘‘(1) LIABILITY IMPOSED.—An air carrier shall
be liable to each passenger on an aircraft for an ex-
cessive departure or arrival delay of the aircraft.
‘‘(2) AMOUNT OF LIABILITY.—
‘‘(A) DELAYS OF MORE THAN 2 BUT LESS
THAN 3 HOURS.—If the excessive departure or
arrival delay is more than 2 but less than 3
hours, the amount of liability under paragraph
(1) shall be 200 percent of the price paid by the
passenger for transportation by the air carrier.
‘‘(B) DELAYS OF 3 HOURS OR MORE.—If
the excessive departure or arrival delay is 3
hours or more, the amount of liability under
paragraph (1) shall be—
‘‘(i) the amount determined under
subparagraph (A), plus
‘‘(ii) an additional 100 percent of the
price paid by the passenger for such trans-
portation multiplied by the number of
hours (or portion thereof) that such period
exceeds 3 hours.
‘‘(3) EXCESSIVE
DEPARTURE
OR
ARRIVAL
DELAY.—In paragraph (1), the term ‘excessive de-
parture or arrival delay’ means a period of time in
excess of 2 hours—
‘‘(A) in the case of departure delay, begin-
ning when the door of an aircraft is closed at
an airport and ending when the aircraft takes
off from the airport or when the door of the air-
craft is open for deplaning of passengers at the
airport; and
‘‘(B) in the case of arrival delay, beginning
upon touchdown of an aircraft at an airport
and ending when the door of the aircraft is
open for deplaning of passengers at the airport.
‘‘(4) TREATMENT OF CERTAIN DELAYS.—Not-
withstanding paragraph (3), a departure delay in ex-
cess of 2 hours shall not be treated as an excessive
departure delay for purposes of paragraph (1) if the
Administrator of the Federal Aviation Administra-
tion determines that the departure delay was the re-
sult of—
‘‘(A) an air traffic control directive and
that the carrier did not receive notification that
it would receive such directive prior to the
scheduled departure time of the flight; or
‘‘(B) a mechanical problem with the air-
craft or other safety concern.
‘‘(d) LOST BAGGAGE.—An air carrier may not limit
its liability for provable direct or consequential damages
resulting from the disappearance of, damage to, or delay
in delivery of a passenger’s personal property, including
luggage, in its custody to an amount less than $2,500 per
passenger.
‘‘(e) OVERBOOKING.—An air carrier shall provide, at
a minimum, to a passenger who is denied boarding invol-
untarily from an oversold flight segment on which the pas-
senger has a confirmed seat—
‘‘(1) alternate transportation to the passenger’s
final destination; and