Kathy Castor: “I thank Ranking Member Pallone for yielding the time. Mr. Speaker, I rise in strong support of the No Hidden FEES Act…”

“I thank Ranking Member Pallone for yielding the time. Mr. Speaker, I rise in strong support of the No Hidden FEES Act, H.R. 6543, and I thank my partner, the gentlewoman of California (Mrs. Kim), for leading the effort here. Mr. Speaker, the No Hidden FEES Act would outlaw junk fees in hotel lodging. It would outlaw that unfair and misleading price advertising, whether it is motels or short-term rentals, or privately owned vacation rentals. It will require an accurate price listing that has to include all fees. Mr. Speaker, I think all too often a family goes online when they are planning their vacation to the Gulf beaches of The Sunshine State for a lovely vacation, or anywhere across the country, too often, as they search online and try to do comparison shopping, not all of the fees are displayed. Mr. Speaker, Mr. Bilirakis would probably agree. That is not fair because oftentimes, at the end their vacation, consumers will go to check out of their hotel or wherever they are staying, and they will tack on these extra fees. It is not fair. It is not right. That is why we want to tackle this industrywide to make sure that there is a level playing field for all families ready to take their vacation and use their hard-earned dollars to do it. These hidden fees also stifle competition because one thing consumers want when they are comparison shopping is that level playing field. They want all the information at their fingertips.…”