President-elect Donald Trump will attempt to undo many of President Joe Biden‘s policies when he takes office this month.
One set of policies that could be on the chopping block include new airline cancellation and refund rules put into law by Secretary Pete Buttigieg’s Department of Transportation.
Those laws, designed to favor consumers over airline companies, made it easier for flyers to seek refunds if their flights were canceled or significantly delayed. The rule sparked controversy among air travel trade groups, which said it would make flying more expensive.
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While it’s unclear if Trump or transportation secretary nominee Sean Duffy will seek to cut the refund rule, airline industry leaders are confident the administration will be easier on them.
Delta Air Lines CEO Ed Bastian said Trump promised “to take a fresh look at the regulatory environment, the bureaucracy that exists in government, the level of overreach that we have seen over the last four years within our industry.”
Southwest Airlines CEO Bob Jordan also said he’s “hopeful for a DOT that is maybe a little less aggressive in terms of regulating or rule-making” in a recent speech.
However, Trump transition spokeswoman Karoline Leavitt declined to comment on Trump rolling back airline refund policies specifically.
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“The Trump Administration will aggressively review and repeal as many of the Biden Administration’s burdensome regulations and special project giveaways that are currently ripping off American taxpayers as possible,” Leavitt told the Washington Examiner.
But while Trump and his administration may not like the rule, which took effect in October, they may not be able to do much to change it. Buttigieg said the rule is Federal Aviation Administration legislation, so it cannot be changed by Trump.
“The automatic refunds principle, for example, began as a rulemaking, but it wound up in the FAA legislation, which means it’s not something that any administration can unilaterally change,” he told Travel and Leisure.
If Trump moves to strike down the rule, he risks alienating his populist base since the refund rules are popular with consumers.
Republicans have often criticized Biden’s hostile approach to airline mergers, but that is likely to soften under a Trump administration. Biden’s DOJ terminated Spirit and JetBlue’s possible merger on anti-competition grounds.
Duffy served as a representative for Wisconsin’s 7th District and then as a Fox Business host. During his confirmation hearing, senators will be curious about how he would run the agency since he doesn’t have a background in transportation. Still, it doesn’t look like he will have a difficult time being confirmed in the Senate, given myriad friendly photos of himself and Republican and Democratic senators, including Peter Welch (D-VT) and Raphael Warnock (D-GA).
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There’s a friendly debate to be had between the great cheeses of Wisconsin and Vermont, and on that topic, as in transportation, @SenPeterWelch is always advocating hard for his state! I really enjoyed our discussion on everything from innovation on eVTOLs, to noise mitigation… pic.twitter.com/aihnh7Abxa
— Sean Duffy (@SeanDuffyWI) December 20, 2024
Trump hasn’t outlined specific policy proposals he would want Duffy to take up, but he did note that Duffy will “eliminate DEI” for pilots and air traffic controllers, along with elevating the travel experience “for all Americans!”
Advocates against the new airline ticket refund rules are hoping the Trump administration can boost their efforts to soften or eliminate the regulation.
Jessica Klement, the American Society of Travel Advisors’ vice president of advocacy, told TMR that she hopes new DOT leadership presents an opportunity to “come out strong in the beginning of the year with the ticket refund issue.”
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“I think we have a strong small business argument to be made to the incoming administration,” she said. “It’s how you approach it, really. We don’t have that opportunity with the sitting administration that came up with the rule in the first place.”
Trump did favor airlines at times during his first term as president. One of his DOT’s last moves was to announce a new regulation that favors airlines by redefining “unfair and deceptive practices” in aviation consumer protection. NPR reported that the move made it more difficult for consumers to seek complaints against airlines.