Title: MIDDLE Act of 2020
Policy area: Transportation and Public Works

Summary:
Maintaining Important Distance During Lengthy Epidemics Act of 2020 or the MIDDLE Act of 2020
This bill prohibits air carriers, during the COVID-19 (i.e., coronavirus disease 2019) public health emergency, from (1) permitting adjacent seats to another occupied seat to be filled on a passenger aircraft, (2) passing along the cost of any seat switch undertaken by such air carriers in order to comply with the prohibitions, and (3) permitting a passenger or crewmember to board a passenger aircraft if the passenger or crewmember is not wearing a mask.
The Federal Aviation Administration must issue guidance for appropriate exceptions to the prohibitions based on federal public health guidance.

[Congressional Bills 116th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H.R. 7741 Introduced in House (IH)]

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116th CONGRESS
  2d Session
                                H. R. 7741

 To promote airline passenger safety during the COVID-19 public health 
                               emergency.


_______________________________________________________________________


                    IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

                             July 23, 2020

  Mr. Cicilline (for himself, Mrs. Beatty, and Mr. Carson of Indiana) 
 introduced the following bill; which was referred to the Committee on 
                   Transportation and Infrastructure

_______________________________________________________________________

                                 A BILL


 
 To promote airline passenger safety during the COVID-19 public health 
                               emergency.

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

SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.

    This Act may be cited as the ``Maintaining Important Distance 
During Lengthy Epidemics Act of 2020'' or the ``MIDDLE Act of 2020''.

SEC. 2. PROMOTING AIRLINE PASSENGER SAFETY DURING THE COVID-19 PUBLIC 
              HEALTH EMERGENCY.

    (a) In General.--Subject to subsection (b), during the period 
beginning on the date that is 14 days after the date of the enactment 
of this Act and ending on the last day of the emergency period 
described in section 1135(g)(1)(B) of the Social Security Act (42 
U.S.C. 1320b-5(g)(1)(B)), an air carrier (as defined in section 40102 
of title 49, United States Code) shall be prohibited from doing any of 
the following:
            (1) Permit adjacent seats to be filled on a passenger 
        aircraft.
            (2) Pass along the cost of any seat switch undertaken by an 
        air carrier in order to comply the prohibition under paragraph 
        (1).
            (3) Permit a passenger or crewmember to board a passenger 
        aircraft if the passenger or crewmember is not wearing a mask.
    (b) Exceptions.--Not later than 14 days after the date of the 
enactment of this Act, taking into account the provisions of the 
Rehabilitation Act of 1973 (29 U.S.C. 701 et seq.), the Americans with 
Disabilities Act of 1990 (42 U.S.C. 12101 et seq.), section 41705 of 
title 49, United States Code (commonly referred to as the ``Air Carrier 
Access Act''), and any Federal health guidance from the Department of 
Health and Human Services (including guidance related to the COVID-19 
public health emergency), the Administrator of the Federal Aviation 
Administration, in consultation with the Secretary of Health and Human 
Services (acting through the Director of the Centers for Disease 
Control and Prevention), shall issue guidance that provides for 
appropriate exceptions to the prohibitions under paragraphs (1) and (3) 
of subsection (a).
    (c) Nondiscrimination.--In carrying out the provisions of this 
section, an air carrier may not discriminate against any person on the 
basis of race, color, religion, genetic information, national origin, 
age, disability, or sex (including sexual orientation and gender 
identity, pregnancy, childbirth, and a medical condition related to 
pregnancy or childbirth).
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