Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg on Tuesday announced a new partnership with more than a dozen state attorneys general to investigate consumer complaints against airlines.
The partnership creates a process for state attorney general’s offices to review complaints from travelers and then pass the baton on to the federal Department of Transportation, which could take enforcement action against airlines.
“The support offered by the attorney general’s offices means our ability to protect airline passengers is expanded,” Mr. Buttigieg said at Denver International Airport, where he appeared with Colorado Attorney General Phil Weiser, a A Democrat who is among those who participated. the partnership.
The federal initiative is the latest step by Mr Buttigieg to improve protections for air travelers and ensure airlines are held accountable when they go wrong. The Transportation Department has issued more than $164 million in penalties to airlines during his tenure, according to the agency. Mr Buttigieg also pressed airlines to seat children with their parents for free and to improve services for travelers facing long delays or cancellations.
The Department of Transportation said attorneys general from 15 states — California, Colorado, Connecticut, Illinois, Maine, Maryland, Michigan, Nevada, New Hampshire, New York, North Carolina, Oklahoma, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island and Wisconsin — had signed agreements to to participate. of the partnership.
Attorneys general from the District of Columbia, the Northern Mariana Islands and the US Virgin Islands have also joined, the department said, bringing the total to 18. Of those, 16 are Democrats and two are Republicans.
Under federal law, states are generally prohibited from enforcing their own consumer protection laws against airlines. State attorneys general have pushed for federal legislation that would authorize them to take action against airlines, just as they can against companies in other industries.
The new partnership does not give them that power. Instead, their offices would investigate complaints from travelers and, if they find that federal consumer protection rules may have been violated, could refer the matter to the Department of Transportation in a fast-track process. The federal agency will then review the complaint and could take enforcement action.
“The ideal world would be a world where states would have formal authority to enforce consumer protection laws alongside the Department of Transportation,” Mr. Weiser said. “Congress has failed to act on this so far, but we don’t expect action.”
In a statement, Airlines for America, a trade group representing the nation’s largest carriers, said it regularly works with the Department of Transportation and state attorneys general to improve the flying experience for travelers.
“We value the role of attorneys general and their work on behalf of consumers,” the group said, adding that it looks forward to continuing to work with them.