S. 5447: Forbidding Airlines from Imposing Ridiculous Fees Act of 2026

This bill would direct the Secretary of Transportation to write regulations within 270 days that limit certain airline fees to amounts that are “reasonable and proportional” to the airline’s actual costs.

What fees are covered

The bill applies to fees airlines charge for:

• Changing or canceling a flight reservation
• Checked baggage or carry-on baggage
• Choosing or being assigned a seat
• Priority boarding
• Any other fee connected to passenger air transportation

What the regulations would do

The Transportation Department would have to set standards to decide whether these fees are justified by the airline’s costs. The bill says the rules should prevent airlines from charging fees that are higher than what is reasonably tied to the cost of providing the service.

For change and cancellation fees, the department would have to consider things like:

• Whether the airline can predict cancellations and price tickets accordingly
• Whether the airline can resell the seat
• Whether the airline may make more or less money by reselling that seat
• Whether the passenger will book another flight with the same airline
• The cost of processing the change or cancellation electronically
• Any related labor costs

For baggage fees, the department would have to consider the cost of processing baggage electronically and any related labor costs.

For seat-selection fees, the bill specifically says the standards should ensure that passengers traveling with children age 13 or younger can be seated together with those children at no extra charge to the family or to other passengers on the flight.

The Transportation Department would also have to update these standards at least every three years.

The bill defines “air carrier” as an airline holding a federal air carrier certificate, and it applies to passenger air transportation in the U.S. and abroad, including interstate, intrastate, and foreign air travel.

Relevant Companies

• UAL — United Airlines could be affected if limits on baggage, seat-selection, change/cancellation, or priority boarding fees reduce ancillary revenue.
• AAL — American Airlines could be affected by restrictions on common passenger fees and required seating accommodations for families with young children.
• DAL — Delta Air Lines could be affected by changes to fee revenue from baggage, seat selection, and other passenger services.
• LUV — Southwest Airlines could be affected by new federal standards for airline fees, including seat-selection and baggage-related charges where applicable.
• JBLU — JetBlue could be affected by limits on fees for bags, seat assignments, and other passenger services.
• ALK — Alaska Air Group could be affected by restrictions on ancillary fees tied to reservations, seating, and baggage.
• HA — Hawaiian Holdings could be affected by limits on passenger fees charged for tickets and onboard services.