Representative María Elvira Salazar Reintroduces the Flight Refund Fairness Act along with Reps. Dina Titus and Mark Alford.

WASHINGTON, D.C. - Today, Reps. María Elvira Salazar (R-FL), Dina Titus (D-NV), and Mark Alford (R-MO) reintroduced H.R. 5556, the Flight Refund Fairness Act.

As one of the busiest tourist destinations in the world, Miami attracts millions of tourists who rely on adequate and fair travel policies. But when flights are canceled, current federal rules can unfairly force small travel agencies to cover the cost of refunds, an expense completely outside their control.

The Flight Refund Fairness Act fixes this problem by making airlines, not small travel advisors, the party responsible for providing a reimbursement. This will allow travelers to get their money back sooner, while protecting small agencies from financial burdens that could put them out of business.

"Miami is the premier tourism hub and the small businesses that support this industry must be protected," said Rep. Salazar. "I'm proud to reintroduce the bipartisan Flight Refund Fairness Act, which will remove a regulatory hurdle for small travel advisors that may otherwise jeopardize business operations, while ensuring consumers are able to get any potential refund in a timely manner."

"As the Co-Chair of the Travel and Tourism Caucus, I know the importance of travel advisors to the hospitality industry across the country," said Rep. Titus. "I'm proud to join the introduction of the Flight Refund Fairness Act so that we can protect these small businesses which continue to help bring more visitors to Southern Nevada to experience everything the Las Vegas Valley has to offer."

"The Flight Refund Fairness Act protects small businesses from the rampant overreach of bureaucrats in Washington," said Rep. Alford. "Local travel planners should not be held responsible for flight cancellations caused by large airlines. I'm proud to co-lead this bill to protect Main Street from Washington."

"Travel advisors are consumer advocates. They navigate complex rules and fight for rightful refunds for their clients," said ASTA President and CEO Zane Kerby."But the current regulatory structure threatens the financial viability of many travel agencies - 95 percent of which are small businesses - by placing the refund burdens on agencies. We applaud the original cosponsors of this legislation, led by Representative Maria Salazar, for recognizing this inequity."

To read the full text of the legislation, click here.