WASHINGTON, D.C. – Congressman Mike Thompson (D-CA), a senior member of the House Committee on Ways and Means, is urging domestic air carriers to stop charging passengers for the cost of federal aviation taxes on their tickets in a bipartisan letter to the Air Transport Association.

The taxes expired last month after Congress failed to pass a funding extension for the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA), but some airlines have continued to include the cost of the tax in their ticket prices.

“The bottom line is consumers are being taken advantage of by some of the airlines,” said Thompson. “Air carriers are including the cost of an expired tax in their ticket prices, rather than passing the savings on to consumers. Airlines shouldn’t be increasing their prices and their profits at the expense of everyday Americans.”

Rep. Thompson also expressed concern about passengers who already paid federal taxes for travel during the FAA shutdown, or were forced to pay more for their base airfare after the shutdown began. The Internal Revenue Service has requested airlines’ assistance in facilitating these refunds, but so far they have declined to do so.

“Passengers are entitled to a refund for the federal taxes paid when they purchased their ticket,” Rep. Thompson continued. “In these extraordinary times when so many Americans are out of work or simply trying to make ends meet, airlines should not be using the FAA shutdown as an excuse to pad their pockets.”

On July 29, Rep. Thompson circulated a copy of his letter on the floor of the U.S. House of Representatives. In less than an hour, he secured over 86 signatures from his colleagues. The letter has 91 total co-signers. The full text of the letter, which is addressed to Richard Anderson, CEO of Delta Air Lines and Chair of the Air Transport Association, is available below:

“Like you, we are discouraged that the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) has been shut down. As a result of this shut down, vital aviation improvements are being put off, thousands of FAA employees have been furloughed, and the Aviation Trust Fund, the fund needed to maintain our aviation system, has effectively been shuttered.

“Given these dramatic turn of events, we are dismayed by public reports that some airlines are taking advantage of everyday Americans. Specifically, we understand that some airlines are continuing to charge passengers for the cost of federal aviation taxes on their tickets even though these taxes have expired, and keeping the money for themselves.

“Consumers quite frankly are being taken advantage of by these airlines. Instead of taking advantage of the FAA shut down, airlines should be passing these immediate savings on to the consumers now. However, it appears that most airlines have taken the alternative route by increasing prices and their profits at the expense of everyday Americans.

“In addition, we are concerned about those consumers who purchased their tickets and paid the applicable excise taxes prior to the FAA shut down. These passengers, who are traveling during this shut down, are entitled to a refund for these federal taxes paid when they purchased their ticket. The Internal Revenue Service has requested airlines assistance in facilitating these refunds. Airlines are best suited to do so because they already have the purchaser information and can streamline refunds. However, so far airlines have declined to do so.

“Therefore, we urge the Air Transport Association (ATA) and all of your member airlines to charge the same price for airfare that you did immediately before the FAA shutdown. In addition, for those passengers who already paid federal excise taxes for travel scheduled during the FAA shutdown or who were forced to pay more for their base airfare because of their profiteering tactics after the FAA shutdown took effect, they should immediately be given a refund of those cost overruns.

“In these extraordinary times when so many Americans are out of work or simply trying to make ends meet, airlines should not be taking advantage of things like an FAA shutdown to increase their profits. We look forward to hearing from the ATA regarding this important issue.”

Thompson represents California’s 1st Congressional District, which includes Del Norte, Humboldt, Lake, Mendocino, Napa, and portions of Sonoma and Yolo counties. He is a senior member of the House Ways and Means Committee and the House Permanent Select Committee on Intelligence. Rep. Thompson is also a member of the fiscally conservative Blue Dog Coalition and Co-Chair of the bipartisan, bicameral Congressional Wine Caucus.