USDOT’s consumer protection office to focus on ‘compliance,’ not financial punishment
The DOT continues to reverse Biden-era policies to comply with the Trump administration's executive orders (EOs).
In a notice published by the Department of Transportation (DOT), the Department has issued a proposal to update the investigatory and enforcement policies of the Office of Aviation Consumer Protection (OACP), including the financial penalties imposed on airlines when they violate regulations.
On January 6, 2026, the DOT published a Notice of Proposed Guidance regarding the OACP’s enforcement policies and practices, including charges against airlines for not complying with aviation consumer protection regulations.
“This notice is being issued to ensure alignment between OACP’s investigatory and enforcement policies and practices and the Administration’s directives and priorities.”
The NPG read that Executive Order (EO) 14219, which the Trump administration published on January 31, 2025, directed Federal agencies to “de-prioritize actions to enforce regulations that are based on anything other than the best reading of a statute or go beyond the powers vested in the Federal Government by the Constitution.”
Consistent with the EO, OACP is looking to change its enforcement program, which would ensure that any enforcement actions “are founded on a positive grant of statutory authority and that monetary penalties, if sought, are based upon statutory text that clearly grants the Department the authority to impose such penalties for the asserted violations.”
Furthermore, in order to have an enforcement policy that falls in line with the Trump administration’s policies, the consumer protection office will focus “on ensuring compliance with civil rights and consumer protection regulations rather than finding and penalizing entities for violations.”
“Proactive measures to promote compliance benefit the public by creating a culture of compliance where regulated entities work to prevent violations from happening in the first place.”
The DOT clarified that if the OACP does find violations, the office will work with the affected entities by warning them via a letter to “help the regulated entity achieve compliance and resolve the issues before pursuing enforcement actions, which may result in negotiated settlement orders assessing civil penalties.”
“When OACP has evidence of widespread, systemic, egregious, or intentional violations, it may determine that enforcement action is appropriate.”
However, under the new policy, if the OACP determines that it has to take enforcement action, it “will attempt to negotiate an order assessing a reasonable civil penalty and requiring reasonable corrective actions such as ensuring consumers are made whole.”
One example of the change in the office’s approach could be the OACP’s decision to waive American Airlines’ $50 million fine that the DOT had imposed on American Airlines in October 2024. On December 10, 2025, the consumer protection office mandated that, instead of paying the remaining $16.8 million to the United States Treasury, $700,000 of which was already credited due to the refunds it had issued to travelers, the carrier should invest in improving the passenger experience for passengers with reduced mobility.
This included additional wheelchair movers, wheelchair lifts at specific airports, and new mobile devices and software to track and record passengers’ wheelchairs when they fly with the airline.
Rytis Beresnevicius
The OACP reiterated that if the office and a regulated carrier cannot reach an agreement, it could escalate the issue by filing a formal complaint to the DOT’s Office of Hearings for a decision by an Administrative Law Judge (ALJ).
“A civil action in a district court of the United States may also be initiated to enforce violations of aviation consumer protection and civil rights statutes or regulations.”
The notice will supersede the DOT’s previous policy document, which it had issued on January 3, 2023. Stakeholders will have 30 days to comment on the notice.
In the OACP’s notice on January 3, 2023, it explained that it had to have a “robust enforcement program” in order to “protect the rights of the traveling public,” especially since the start of the pandemic, the OACP had experienced an “unprecedented increase in air travel service complaints.”
“To confront the challenges faced by consumers, OACP believes that it is necessary to recalibrate the penalties imposed on airlines and ticket agents for violations of consumer protection, civil rights, and economic licensing requirements.”
This is not the first, nor probably the last, Biden-era regulation that the Trump administration-led DOT has reversed. On September 30, 2025, the Department said that it will draw up new regulations concerning specific provisions of the ‘Ensuring Safe Accommodations for Air Travelers With Disabilities Using Wheelchairs’ rule.
During the same month, the DOT informed stakeholders that, consistent with the Trump administration’s priorities, it planned to withdraw the Advance Notice of Proposed Rulemaking (ANPRM). It withdrew the ANPRM on November 17, 2025, arguing that the decision was consistent with EO 14192, the same order that the OACP cited when making changes to its enforcement policies.
Rytis Beresnevicius
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