Statements on Introduced Bills and Joint Resolutions

Floor Speech

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Mr. REED. Mr. President, today I am introducing the Protection from Abusive Passengers Act, a bill that is aimed at eliminating the rash of violence and abuse that is occurring on commercial flights across the country. I am pleased to be joined in this effort by Representative Eric Swalwell of California, who is introducing companion legislation in the other body. The goal of our bill is to send a clear signal that individuals who engage in serious abusive or violent behavior on an aircraft or at an airport security checkpoint will be banned from flying.

Since 2020, we have seen an extraordinary increase in the number of cases of violence and abuse against crewmembers and airline passengers. In 2021, the Federal Aviation Administration received 5,981 reports of ``unruly passengers.'' Those complaints led to 1,124 investigations, nearly the same number of investigations as the previous 10 years combined. From those investigations, the Federal Aviation Administration, FAA, has initiated 350 enforcement actions and proposed $5 million in fines. In February, it was widely reported that the FAA had referred 80 cases to the FBI for criminal investigation. Clearly, these are not minor infractions. Here some recent examples:

In December 2021, the FAA proposed a record $52,500 fine against a passenger who tried to open the cockpit door on a Delta flight from Honolulu to Seattle, struck a flight attendant twice, and threatened him.

The FAA also proposed a $45,000 fine against a passenger ``for throwing objects, including his carry-on luggage, at other passengers; refusing to stay seated; lying on the floor in the aisle, refusing to get up, and then grabbing a flight attendant by the ankles and putting his head up her skirt.''

It proposed a $30,000 fine against a passenger on a Jan. 3, 2021, flight from Atlanta for ``allegedly interfering with the flight attendants' deplaning procedures upon arrival. He attempted to gain entry to the flight deck by physically assaulting two flight attendants, threatening to kill one of them, and demanding them to open the door.''

Last December, a passenger on Southwest Airlines pleaded guilty to punching a flight attendant in the face multiple times in a May 2021 incident in Sacramento. According to prosecutors, the flight attendant was taken to a hospital with injuries that included a swollen eye, a bruised arm, and a cut under her eye that had to be stitched. She also had three chipped teeth, two of which: had to be replaced with crowns.

Such actions in any setting would be deplorable and reprehensible, but on an airplane, such behavior can also represent a real threat to all passengers. Clearly, the existing regime of civil and criminal penalties has not been enough to deter the upsurge in cases. We need to send a signal that such types of behavior will not be tolerated.

The Protection from Abusive Passengers Act would require the Transportation Security Administration, TSA, to create and manage a program which bars passengers who are fined or convicted of serious physical violence and abuse from flying. Transparency and notice will be provided to banned individuals, including guidelines for removal. The bill would also permanently ban abusive passengers from participating in the TSA PreCheck or Customs' Global Entry programs.

The bill provides appropriate fairness and due process by ensuring that only individuals who have been assessed a civil or criminal penalty for abusive and violent behavior will be included on the list of banned fliers. The bill also requires the TSA to explain how it will maintain its list of banned fliers, provide an explanation of how long the individual may be barred from flying based on the severity of the offense, and provide how the individual can seek to be removed from the list of banned fliers.

I believe this bill strikes the appropriate balance to assure fairness and transparency while sending a strong signal that violent and abusive behavior will not be tolerated. I am pleased that the bill is supported by both labor and the airlines, including American Airlines, Delta Airlines, Southwest Airlines, the Association of Flight Attendants-CWA, the Association of Professional Flight Attendants, Transport Workers Union of America, and the Transportation Trades Department of the AFL-CIO. I hope that my colleagues will join me in supporting this important bill.

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