Win for travelers: Congress caps airline-ticket TSA fees

WASHINGTON – Security fees on airline tickets will be capped at $11.20 per round-trip under legislation the Senate cleared unanimously Thursday for President Obama's signature.

The House had approved the cap in a 423-0 vote in September, after complaints that the Transportation Security Administration began charging higher fees than lawmakers intended.

The cap is projected to save travelers $60 million per year, according to airlines and consumer groups.

"In tough economic times, I know that every extra dollar spent on more fees and taxes adds up," said Rep. Richard Hudson, R-N.C., who sponsored the legislation. "Rolling back fees and reducing taxes on airline passengers benefits everyone – from helping families save money when traveling for the holidays to cutting costs for small businesses whose employees travel for work."

The dispute was over how high Congress intended to raise the security fees, largely to reduce the federal deficit. A year ago, the fees had been $2.50 per leg of a trip, capped at $5 each direction or $10 per round-trip.

But in a December 2013 decision, lawmakers agreed to raise the fee to a flat $5.60 per one-way trip in order to generate $12.6 billion over the next decade for deficit reduction.

When TSA implemented the fee in July, the agency defined the fee as applying to each leg of a flight, which critics said could result in fees of $22.40 or more for business travelers and others who string together a number of flights in a circuit.

The decision sparked widespread criticism. The chairmen of the two congressional budget committees – Rep. Paul Ryan, R-Wis., and Sen. Patty Murray, D-Wash. – wrote a letter stating the legislative intention to cap the fees at $11.20 per round-trip. The votes this fall confirmed that position.

"This Senate vote, together with the unanimous House vote, will save travelers an estimated $60 million in new taxes on airline travel," said Charlie Leocha, chairman of Travelers United, a consumer-advocacy group.

Airlines for America, the trade group representing the largest carriers, challenged TSA's interpretation in federal appeals court, seeking the cap included in the legislation.

"As key drivers of jobs and economic growth, U.S. airlines agree with the bipartisan majority of Congress that keeping the round-trip cap in place will benefit the millions of customers who rely on safe, efficient and affordable air travel in communities across the country," said Nicholas Calio, CEO of A4A.