Washington, DC – U.S. Senators Barbara Boxer (D-CA), Olympia Snowe (R-ME), Charles Schumer (D-NY) and Frank Lautenberg (D-NJ) were joined by passenger advocate Kate Hanni at a press conference on Capitol Hill today to call for prompt Senate passage of the Airline Passengers’ Bill of Rights, legislation sponsored by Senators Boxer and Snowe.

Boxer said, “We are calling on all of the committees with jurisdiction over the FAA to work in a bipartisan manner to get the Passengers’ Bill of Rights to the floor. We need this legislation. Passenger complaints are up 60 percent, and we have entire fleets of aircraft grounded due to safety violations and concerns. Safety is our first priority and we need to set some basic standards of care for our passengers.”

Snowe said, “More than a year ago, Senator Boxer and I introduced the Passenger Bill of Rights, and like all traveling Americans, we are still waiting for the Senate to act on this legislation as our bill languishes in the FAA Reauthorization,” said Senator Snowe. “Congress has a responsibility to the American people to ensure there is some level of accountability, some minimum standard in place. If a patron visits a restaurant that does not offer some modicum of functioning restrooms or provide adequate food and water, that customer can leave the restaurant and find another. For the airline passenger, that simply is not an option.”

Schumer said, “Everyone except the FAA seems to realize that the situation with delays is out of control and until they wake-up, the least we can do is give airline passengers some much needed relief and some desperately needed rights. Passengers should not be held hostage while the FAA dithers. This bill is not the answer to flight delays but it will certainly help passengers cope and fight back.”

Lautenberg said, “Airline passengers deserve better. From constant flight delays to overselling seats and bumping travelers, airlines are not upholding the rights of passengers. That’s why I worked to get more funding for better airline consumer protection enforcement and why we are standing here for passenger rights today. If the airlines are not going to protect passenger rights, then we will.”

The Senators’ call for action came amidst growing signs of trouble for airline passengers. Numerous airlines have grounded aircraft because of safety violations and concerns. American Airlines just announced a third consecutive day of cancellations, stranding thousands of travelers. And the 2008 Airline Quality Rating report showed that consumer complaints are up 60 percent.

Efforts by states to protect the rights of passengers hit a roadblock in March when the U.S. Court of Appeals struck down a New York State law designed to protect air travelers, saying that only the federal government has the authority to enact such a law.

The Senate Commerce Committee passed the Boxer-Snowe Airline Passengers Bill of Rights as part of the FAA Reauthorization Bill in May 2007. The legislation ensures that travelers are not unnecessarily trapped on airplanes or deprived of food, potable water or adequate restroom facilities.

The language included by the Committee also requires air carriers to develop and submit to the Secretary of Transportation their own plan, incorporating medical considerations, to ensure that passengers are provided a clear timeframe under which they will be permitted to deplane a delayed aircraft. The Secretary would be required to make the plans available to the public. In the absence of such a plan, passengers would have the option of safely deplaning a grounded aircraft three hours after the plane door has closed. This option would be provided every three hours that the plane continues to sit on the ground.

The Senate cannot move forward on the legislation until the Finance and Commerce Committees resolve the funding issues in the FAA Reauthorization.

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