The "Hotel Fees Transparency Act of 2025" mandates clear, upfront pricing for hotel and short-term rental rooms, including all mandatory fees, to prevent deceptive advertising.
Young Kim
Representative
CA-40
The Hotel Fees Transparency Act of 2025 prohibits unfair and deceptive advertising of hotel rooms and short-term rentals by requiring clear and upfront disclosure of the total price, including all mandatory fees, before purchase. It empowers the FTC and state attorneys general to enforce the law, while providing an affirmative defense for intermediaries who rely on inaccurate information from hotels and promptly correct errors. The act ensures consumers see the full price of accommodations, promoting transparency and preventing hidden fees.
Booking Your Next Trip? New Bill Targets Hidden Hotel Fees, Mandates Upfront Total Price Display
The 'Hotel Fees Transparency Act of 2025' aims to end the frustrating practice of hidden mandatory fees when booking hotels or short-term rentals. This proposed legislation requires any business advertising or selling these accommodations online to clearly and prominently display the total services price right from the start. This total must include the base room rate plus any mandatory service fees – think resort fees or cleaning fees that you have to pay. Government taxes and genuinely optional charges, like parking or pet fees, aren't required in this initial total. The rules are set to apply to advertisements made 450 days after the bill potentially becomes law.
What You See Is What You (Mostly) Pay
The core idea here, outlined in Section 2, is straightforward: stop unfair or deceptive pricing where the advertised rate balloons by the time you check out. Imagine comparing two hotels online. Under this bill, both would have to show their price including those mandatory resort fees upfront, making it much easier to see the actual cost difference before you even click 'book'. While they can still break down the price into components (like base rate + resort fee), the total services price must be the most visible number presented throughout the booking process. This doesn't include government-imposed taxes or fees, so you'll still see those added later, but mandatory charges levied by the hotel itself should be baked into that initial price.
Keeping Everyone Honest
So, who makes sure this actually happens? Enforcement falls to the Federal Trade Commission (FTC), using its existing authority under the Federal Trade Commission Act to tackle unfair or deceptive practices (specifically referencing 15 U.S.C. 57a(a)(1)(B)). State attorneys general also get the power to sue on behalf of their residents if they spot violations. There's a consideration for online travel agencies or booking platforms: if a hotel gives them incorrect pricing information, the platform might have an 'affirmative defense' if they acted in 'good faith' and quickly corrected the error once they found out. This means the platform wouldn't be penalized if they were genuinely misled by the hotel or rental provider.
The Bigger Picture: Rules of the Road
This federal bill also sets a baseline. It specifies that state laws contradicting its rules about fee disclosure are preempted, meaning the federal standard would apply. However, states can still enforce laws that require even more disclosure, like demanding all service fees be included in the total price. Importantly, this bill doesn't interfere with other state consumer protection laws covering things like contracts, fraud, or data breaches. Essentially, it aims to create a clearer, more consistent standard for how mandatory accommodation fees are advertised across the country, letting you compare prices more reliably without surprise charges popping up at the last minute.