Biden Signs FAA Bill: Automatic Refunds, Biometrics and More Flights From D.C.
Photo Credit: A United Airlines Bombardier CRJ550 takes off from Washington Reagan National airport. Dave Mackenzie/Flickr Flickr / Dave MacKenzie
Skift Take
The sweeping bill includes a range of consumer protections, including automatic refunds and guaranteed family seating.
President Biden signed the Federal Aviation Administration Reauthorization Bill into law Thursday, which will codify automatic refunds and guaranteed family seating into U.S. law.
Typically, the FAA bill is able to pass without too much debate. But with issues ranging from outdated technology to the use of biometrics in airports, the bill was held up in Congress for over a year.
Here’s what made it into the final version of the bill:
More Flights at DCAOne of the biggest issues that caused the FAA bill to stall was a provision to add more long-distance flights to Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport. The space-constrained airport already limits flights to those within a 1,250-mile radius of the airport.
Forty flights are exempt from this rule, but some senators wanted to increase that number, arguing that it could give consumers more choices.
Washington, D.C
