The Transportation Department is rolling out a “dashboard” to let travelers see at a glance which airlines help families with young children sit together at no extra cost.
The announcement Monday comes as the department works on regulations to prevent families from being separated on planes.
It’s the latest salvo in the Biden administration’s efforts to clamp down on what it calls “junk fees ” and to put pressure on airlines to improve service.
The dashboard rewards airlines with a green check if they guarantee that an adult family member can sit next to their young children if seats are available. On Monday, only three of the 10 U.S. airlines listed on the website received a green check: Alaska, American and Frontier.
The site also includes links to each airline’s customer policies.
This year, several carriers have pledged to make changes in their seating policies.
Last month, Frontier Airlines said it would automatically seat at least one parent next to any child under 14.
Last week, American Airlines updated its customer-service plan with a guarantee that children 14 and under would be seated next to an accompanying adult at no extra cost.
United Airlines said it would let families with children under 12 to pick adjoining seats at no extra cost starting in early March in certain fare classes. The announcement seemed to fall short of Transportation standards however, because the department issued a notice last July that it intends to ban extra charges to have a family adult sit next to children up to age 13.
The new dashboard builds on a site that the Transportation Department started last year to detail compensation for passengers whose flights are canceled or delayed.
U.S. to challenge Mexico GMO ban
The Biden administration said on Monday that it would take initial steps toward challenging a ban that Mexico has placed on shipments of genetically modified corn from the United States, restrictions that have rankled farmers and threatened a profitable export.
Mexico has planned to phase out the use of genetically modified corn, as well as an herbicide called glyphosate, by 2024. About 90% of corn grown in the United States is genetically modified.
Senior administration officials have expressed concerns to the Mexican government about the measures for more than a year in virtual and in-person meetings, saying they could disrupt millions of dollars of agricultural trade and cause serious harm to U.S. producers. Mexico is the second largest market for U.S. corn, after China.
Feds move to label ‘Made in USA’ meat
Shoppers could soon find it easier to tell if those grocery store steaks or pork chops were really “Made in the USA.”
Federal agriculture officials on Monday released new requirements that would allow labels on meat, poultry or eggs to use that phrase — or “Product of USA” — only if they come from animals “born, raised, slaughtered and processed in the United States.” That’s a change from current policy, which allows voluntary use of such labels on products from animals that have been imported from a foreign country and slaughtered in the U.S., but also on meat that’s been imported and repackaged or further processed.
Imports of beef from countries including Australia, Canada and Brazil, for instance, account for about 12% of the total consumed in the U.S. Overall, imports of red meat and poultry account for less than 6%, while imports of eggs account for less than half of 1%.
Tesla details price cuts for high-end models
Tesla Inc. reduced prices of its more expensive models again, days after Elon Musk said cuts earlier this year had piqued interest in the company’s electric vehicles.
The Model S and X now start at $89,990 and $99,990 in the U.S., down a respective 5.3% and 9.1%, according to Tesla’s website. The company lowered prices of the higher-performance Plaid versions of each vehicle by 4.3% and 8.3%.
At $109,990, Plaid iterations of the S and X now cost $26,000 and $29,000 less than they did in early January.
— From news services