The bill improves upfront price transparency for travelers and adds enforcement tools for consumers, but it imposes compliance costs on businesses, may preempt stronger state protections, and could still allow some last-step tax/fee surprises.
Consumers (travelers) will see the full 'total services' price (base price plus required service fees) up front in advertising and at purchase, reducing surprise charges at checkout.
Consumers will receive explicit disclosure of government-imposed taxes, fees, or assessments before final purchase, improving price transparency for travelers.
State attorneys general can sue on behalf of residents to enforce the rule, giving consumers an additional legal recourse against deceptive pricing.
Hotels, short-term rental operators, and online intermediaries must modify pricing displays and systems, creating compliance costs that may be passed on to consumers as higher prices.
State governments and residents may lose stronger local consumer protections where federal preemption overrides differing state rules, potentially limiting remedies in some jurisdictions.
Consumers could still face last-step surprise charges for government-imposed taxes or assessments if those fees are excluded from the defined 'total services' price, causing confusion despite required disclosures.
Based on analysis of 2 sections of legislative text.
Mandates that hotels and sellers show the total services price prominently and disclose government taxes/fees before final purchase in interstate commerce.
Requires hotels and entities selling hotel services in interstate commerce (including direct offers, OTAs, and metasearch sites) to show the total price up front whenever a price is displayed, disclose the total price to a shopper at first display and throughout the purchase process, and disclose any government-imposed taxes, fees, or assessments before final purchase. It allows itemized components to be shown less prominently, permits indemnification agreements among sellers, and makes violations enforceable by the Federal Trade Commission and by State attorneys general through parens patriae actions with specified notice and intervention procedures.
Introduced February 21, 2025 by Young Kim · Last progress April 29, 2025