photo by flickr user Alaskan Dude

New federal laws are requiring airlines to disclose the full price of a ticket to potential passengers.  Spirit Airlines, home of the $9 Fare Club, is voicing their concerns about the changes.

The new laws also require that airlines alert ticket purchasers of baggage fees early in the process, as well as allow passengers to cancel their flight arrangements within 24 hours of purchase.  You can learn more from this WBTW report.

It sounds pretty good.  No more being lured in by a really cheap fare only to realize it's considerably higher after the fees are added, right?  There's another side to the story that's worth mentioning, though.  On the Spirit Airlines website, there's a link to KeepMyFareLow.org, a site that appears to be hosted by Spirit.  It warns that requiring airlines to lump together the price of the flight with government fees and taxes creates a situation where the government can raise their portion without being obvious about it.  As per this site:

As the transparency leader and most consumer-friendly airline, Spirit DOES NOT support this new USDOT mandate. We believe the better form of transparency is to break out costs so customers know exactly what they're buying.

Spirit is urging all air-travelers to contact their representative to voice concerns.  To contact your House representative click here.  To contact your Senate representative click here.