DOT Finalizes Security Fee

The U.S. Department of Transportation on the last day of 2001 issued an interim final rule mandating airlines to collect a $2.50 fee for each passenger enplanement. The fee, first authorized in the Aviation and Transportation Security Act signed by President George W. Bush on Nov. 19, goes into effect Feb. 1. Each passenger will be charged $2.50 per enplanement but no more than $5 per one-way trip and $10 roundtrip.

DOT's budget office expects the fee to generate $900 million during fiscal year 2002 and help fund new security initiatives throughout the aviation system. Many travel managers--still paying fuel surcharges on most business routes, despite the marked drop in fuel prices--in the past few months already had accepted the idea of a security surcharge as a necessary measure to improve air transportation security.

Foreign and domestic carriers are required to collect the fees for enplanements at all U.S. airports and forward them to DOT's newly established Transportation Security Administration. Though the fee will be applied next month, DOT is accepting comments through March 1.