Sen. Chris Van Hollen (D-Md.) is introducing a bill that would "prohibit airlines from forcibly removing passengers after they have already boarded the plane due to oversells or airline staff seeking to fly as passengers," International Business Times reports. The bill, called the "Customers Not Cargo Act," comes in the wake of a viral video showing the violent removal of a passenger who refused to give up his seat on an overbooked United Airlines plane.
As it stands now, a 2008 federal rule limits the amount of money airlines can pay ticketed passengers to $1,350 if they are involuntarily removed from flights. As a result, airlines are basically incentivized to forcibly remove passengers rather than offer more money. "The airline should be required to offer the passengers an incentive that gets someone to volunteer to deplane, rather than drag them off — and right now the incentives are in the wrong direction," Van Hollen told IBT. "There will be a price point at which someone will voluntarily get off the airplane. That's what airlines should be required to do."
Subscribe to The Week
Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.
Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
-
New Year's Honours: why the controversy?Today's Big Question London Mayor Sadiq Khan and England men's football manager Gareth Southgate have both received a knighthood despite debatable records
-
Schloss Roxburghe: a quiet country retreat in the Scottish BordersThe Week Recommends Hyatt has added a collection of self-catering cottages to its destination hotel
-
The biggest sporting events of 2025The Explainer Women's Rugby World Cup and African Cup of Nations are among sporting highlights this coming year
-
Judges block $25B Kroger-Albertsons mergerSpeed Read The proposed merger between the supermarket giants was stalled when judges overseeing two separate cases blocked the deal
-
Rupert Murdoch loses 'Succession' court battleSpeed Read Murdoch wanted to give full control of his empire to son Lachlan, ensuring Fox News' right-wing editorial slant
-
Bitcoin surges above $100k in post-election rallySpeed Read Investors are betting that the incoming Trump administration will embrace crypto
-
Enron mystery: 'sick joke' or serious revival?Speed Read 23 years after its bankruptcy filing, the Texas energy firm has announced its resurrection
-
US charges Indian tycoon with bribery, fraudSpeed Read Indian billionaire Gautam Adani has been indicted by US prosecutors for his role in a $265 million scheme to secure solar energy deals
-
Boeing machinists approve contract, end strikeSpeed Read The company's largest union approved the new contract offer, ending a seven-week strike
-
US economy still strong in final preelection reportSpeed Read It grew at a solid 2.8% annual rate from July through September
-
Boeing machinists reject deal, continue strikeSpeed Read The rejection came the same day Boeing reported a $6.2 billion quarterly loss
