The Department of Transportation unveiled a dashboard showing which airlines provide free seats for families

The Department of Transportation is launching a dashboard to clarify which airlines place children under 13 next to their accompanying adult at no extra charge as part of the Biden administration’s latest effort to crack down on hidden corporate fees.

The department said it had received a number of complaints that children, including one aged 11 months, were not seated next to an accompanying adult. The Department of Transportation has reviewed airline family accommodation policies and found that carriers do not guarantee that young children will be seated next to adults, although they usually have policies in place to do so.

Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg said in a statement on Monday that until a few months ago, no US airline guaranteed free family accommodation. In recent weeks, carriers including United, Frontier and American Airlines have changed their family seat policies.

“Parents traveling with young children should be able to sit together and the airline won’t force them to pay trash fees,” Buttigieg said, adding that the Department has pushed for airlines to guarantee free accommodation for families. “All airlines should do this as soon as possible, even as we move forward with a rule making this a requirement for everyone.”

President Joe Biden advocated “garbage levies” in an address to the US Congress last month, saying that airlines “can’t just treat your child like a piece of luggage.” In a statement Monday, the Department of Transportation said it was developing a rule that would prevent airlines from charging families to sit together. Last summer, the Department urged airlines to do “everything in their power” to carry children under the age of 13 with adults at no extra charge.

Last month, several Democratic senators introduced the Family Flying Act, which would prevent airlines from charging families extra for sitting together. The Biden administration plans to send additional legislation to Congress on the issue in the coming weeks, the DOT said in a statement.

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