President Biden Targets Hotel Resort Fees in Larger Crackdown

U.S. President Joe Biden commented on Wednesday that his administration would look to crack down on “surprise fees” consumers face. Biden named two examples, including “resort fees” for hotel stays and administrative fees for live events and concert tickets.

The Federal Trade Commission had begun to work on a rule last week to crack down on “unfair and deceptive fees across all industries,” Reuters reported.

Biden’s remarks came as his administration faced pressure to clamp down on inflation that has hit four-decade peaks. A recent lawsuit by Washington, D.C.,’s attorney general against Marriott International alleged that the company generated hundreds of millions of dollars from resort fees. The American Society of Travel Advisors (ASTA) has called resort fees “out of control” and the leader of Booking Holdings, Glenn Fogel, has scolded the hotel industry about the practice.