HR1479-119

What This Bill Does

The Hotel Fees Transparency Act of 2025 prohibits a covered entity from displaying, advertising, marketing, or offering hotel rooms or other short-term rental services in interstate commerce unless the price clearly, conspicuously, and prominently shows the total services price wherever the covered services are advertised or offered. The same total price must be disclosed when the covered service is first displayed to a purchaser and throughout the purchasing process. Before final purchase, the covered entity must disclose any tax, fee, or assessment imposed by a government entity, quasi-government entity, or government-created special district or program. The bill still allows less-prominent display of price components and other optional details, and it allows contracts between covered entities to include indemnification provisions for price or fee information they share. Violations are treated as unfair or deceptive practices under the FTC Act. The FTC may enforce the rule using its existing powers, penalties, privileges, and immunities. State attorneys general may sue as parens patriae on behalf of residents, must generally notify the FTC before filing, and the FTC may intervene.

Who Benefits and How

Hotel guests, short-term rental guests, families booking travel, business travelers, online travel consumers, state residents, state attorneys general, and the Federal Trade Commission benefit from upfront total-price disclosure, fewer surprise resort or cleaning fees at checkout, government tax and fee disclosure before purchase, and federal and state enforcement authority. Consumers can compare lodging offers based on the total services price instead of a low headline rate that excludes mandatory charges.

Who Bears the Burden and How

Hotels, short-term rental platforms, online travel agencies, third-party distributors, metasearch referral services, booking-engine software providers, hospitality marketing staff, lodging revenue managers, customer-support staff, and fee-data vendors must update advertisements, price lists, booking flows, tax displays, fee feeds, contracts, and compliance procedures. Covered entities that violate the disclosure rule face FTC penalties and state attorney-general civil actions.

Key Provisions

• Requires covered lodging sellers to display the total services price prominently whenever a covered-service price is advertised or offered.
• Requires total-price disclosure from the first display through the purchasing process.
• Requires disclosure before final purchase of taxes, fees, and assessments imposed by government or quasi-government entities.
• Allows less-prominent display of price components and optional details.
• Allows indemnification contracts between covered entities for shared price or fee information.
• Treats violations as FTC Act unfair or deceptive practices and authorizes state attorney-general enforcement.