Acpac Modernization Act

Floor Speech

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Mr. FIGURES. Madam Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume.

I rise in support of H.R. 5663, the ACPAC Modernization Act, bipartisan legislation introduced by my friend from Nevada Representative Titus.

Congress has delivered several key victories to the flying public to help them have a better flying experience. This included requirements for passengers to receive automatic refunds; requiring airlines to develop policies to reimburse passengers for travel, meals, and hotel accommodations when experiencing a flight disruption; and requiring airlines to allow young children to sit next to their parents.

The Aviation Consumer Protection Advisory Committee, or ACPAC, established by Congress during the 2012 FAA reauthorization, has helped implement these reforms, as it advises the Transportation Secretary on aviation consumer protection issues.

However, the advisory committee is currently missing a critical voice, the voice of ticket agents.

In 2024, ticket agents sold over 781,000 airline tickets a day, totaling nearly $100 billion in annual sales. Their expertise in the aviation consumer experience and industry is vital to the ACPAC's work.

However, even as a substantial portion of the flying public relies on their services, ticket agents are currently not represented on the committee. This means they will be implementing many of the rules that fall directly on them, since they are the point of sale, but have no input on how these rules will be implemented. Their voices simply are not currently heard.

This could potentially leave consumers who purchase tickets from online ticket agents worse off.

That is why I support H.R. 5663, as amended. This commonsense bill would rectify this oversight by adding a representative of ticket agents to the ACPAC, allowing them to advise on the very rules they will be responsible for implementing.

This would put ticket agents at the same level on the commission as air carriers, travel management companies, nonprofits with expertise in disability and accessibility issues, and other important industry advisers to the DOT.

This bill builds upon section 508 of the 2024 FAA reauthorization, which extended the authorization of ACPAC through September 30, 2028.

Madam Speaker, I support this bill now to fulfill the potential of ACPAC and urge my colleagues to do the same. I reserve the balance of my time.

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Mr. FIGURES. Madam Speaker, I yield 5 minutes to the gentlewoman from Nevada (Ms. Titus).

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Mr. FIGURES. Madam Speaker, Congress has delivered victories for the flying public before, and it is time we do so again by modernizing the ACPAC.

Ticket agents are in many cases the face and the voice of airlines. They have to deal with so much as it relates to implementing the rules, to delivering bad news, to hearing the attitudes, to hearing the feedback of customers. That is why I support H.R. 5663, as amended, to give them the voice that they deserve in this process, and I urge my colleagues to do the same.

Madam Speaker, I yield back the balance of my time.

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