Notice of Submission of Proposed Information Collection to OMB; Agency Request for Renewal of Previously Approved Collections: Nondiscrimination on the Basis of Disability in Air Travel: Reporting Requirements for Disability-Related Complaints
Published Date: 1/30/2026
Notice
Summary
The Department of Transportation is renewing its rules that require airlines to report complaints about disability discrimination during air travel. This affects all airlines flying in, out, or within the U.S. There are no changes to the rules, but the public can comment until March 2, 2026, and the renewal helps keep tracking fair treatment on flights smooth and clear.
Analyzed Economic Effects
2 provisions identified: 1 benefits, 1 costs, 0 mixed.
Airlines must keep and report disability complaints
If you operate an airline that flies to, from, or within the U.S. with at least one aircraft designed for more than 60 seats, you must record and categorize disability-related complaints, retain correspondence and records of action for three years, and submit an annual summary report to the Department of Transportation by the last Monday in January. DOT counted 170 reporting carriers and 49,082 complaints in Calendar Year 2023; DOT estimates it takes 0.25 hours to record/categorize each complaint, 0.083 (repeating) hours to retain records per complaint, and 0.5 hours per carrier to submit the annual report.
DOT will publish and use complaint data
If you are a person with a disability, the Department of Transportation will continue to publish airline disability-complaint data and use those reports to prepare an annual report to Congress and to inform policy and enforcement. DOT relies on the data to comply with 49 U.S.C. 41705(c)(3) and posts the annual reports on its website.
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