To prohibit unfair and deceptive advertising of prices for hotel rooms and other places of short-term lodging, and for other purposes.
Sponsors
Legislative Progress
Passed HouseReceived; read twice and placed on the calendar
Passed House (inferred from eh version)
Additional sponsors: Mr. Goldman of Texas, Mr. Vindman, and Mr. …
Committed to the Committee of the Whole House on the …
Mrs. Kim (for herself, Ms. Castor of Florida, Mr. Fry, …
Summary
What This Bill Does:
This bill is about making hotel prices clearer for consumers. It stops hotels from hiding extra fees like taxes and resort fees in fine print or adding them at checkout. The main goal is to prevent sneaky pricing tricks that confuse people.
Who Benefits and How:
- Consumers: You'll know the full price upfront, so no surprises when you check out.
- Travel Agents & Online Booking Sites: They won't be fined for not displaying total prices clearly.
Who Bears the Burden and How:
- Hotels & Short-Term Rental Services: They must now display all fees and taxes clearly. This might involve updating websites and booking systems, which could cost some money.
- Travel Agents & Online Booking Sites (if they don't comply): They could face fines for not displaying total prices clearly.
Key Provisions:
- Hotels must show the full price upfront, including taxes and fees.
- No more hiding extra charges until checkout or in fine print.
- Travel agents and booking sites also have to display total prices clearly.
- The Federal Trade Commission (FTC) will enforce these rules, with penalties for violations.
- State attorneys general can also take action if they think residents are being harmed.
Evidence Chain:
This summary is derived from the structured analysis below. See "Detailed Analysis" for per-title beneficiaries/burden bearers with clause-level evidence links.
Primary Purpose
To prohibit unfair and deceptive advertising of prices for hotel rooms and other places of short-term lodging by requiring clear, conspicuous, and prominent display of total services price, including all fees and taxes.
Policy Domains
Bill Structure & Actor Mappings
Who is "The Secretary" in each section?
- "covered_entity"
- → A person, partnership, or corporation with jurisdiction under section 5(a)(2) of the Federal Trade Commission Act.
Key Definitions
Terms defined in this bill
The temporary provision of a room, building, or other lodging facility.
An establishment primarily engaged in providing covered services to the general public and promoted/advertised/marketed in interstate commerce.
A property providing covered services for periods shorter than 30 consecutive days, promoted/advertised/marketed in interstate commerce.
The total cost of covered services, including the base services price and any service fees.
We use a combination of our own taxonomy and classification in addition to large language models to assess meaning and potential beneficiaries. High confidence means strong textual evidence. Always verify with the original bill text.
Learn more about our methodology