Travel Agents Registration Act
Latest action. Referred to House Committee on Interstate and Foreign Commerce.
Travel Agents Registration Act - Declares the finding of Congress that it is in the public interest to strengthen the travel agency industry and to maintain public confidence in travel agents by regulating travel agents. Provides that on and after January 1, 1974, no person shall, directly or indirectly, engage in the business of conducting a travel agency without having first received a registration certificate as provided by this Act. Establishes in the Department of Transportation a Bureau of Travel Agents Registration, headed by a Director appointed by the Secretary of Transportation. Provides that the Director shall promulgate such rules and regulations, including, but not limited to, those necessary to require sound financial practices by registered travel agents and those considered necessary to carry out the purposes of this title. Provides that the Secretary shall establish such rules and regulations as may be necessary: (1) to provide for applications in such form and containing such information as may by necessary to obtain registration pursuant to this title; (2) to require that each applicant make an adequate showing of financial responsibility to engage in the business of conducting a travel agency in order to obtain such registration; and (3) to require that such financial responsibility be established in accordance with objective criteria prescribed in such rules and regulations. Provides that registration certificates issued pursuant to this title shall not be assignable or transferable. Provides for a fine of up to $1,000 upon a finding that the holder of a registration certificate has engaged in any of the following practices: (1) fraud or bribery in securing a registration certificate issued pursuant to this title; (2) the making of any false statement as to a material matter in any application or other statement required by or pursuant to this title; (3) violation of any provision of this title or any code, rule, or regulation adopted hereunder; (4) any fraud or fraudulent practice in the operation and conduct of a travel agency business including, but not limited to, intentionally misleading advertising; (5) activities prohibited by this title leading to conviction of a misdemeanor; (6) activities leading to conviction of a misdemeanor; (6) activities leading to conviction of a felony; and (7) breach of a fiduciary duty to a principal. Provides for the revocation of the certificate of a registered agency for violations of this title after an opportunity for a hearing and review by the United States court of appeals. Provides penalties of up to $2,000 or imprisonment of not more than two years, or both, for any knowing and willful violations of this title. Provides that effective on and after January 1, 1974, no State or subdivision thereof shall adopt or enforce any law regulating, or setting any standards with respect to, the activity of engaging in the business of conducting a travel agency. Provides that the provisions of this Act shall be in addition to, and not in lieu of, the rules, regulations and orders of any other Federal agency which may by law regulate carriers of air or steamship carriers.
Written by analysts at the Congressional Research Service and published on Congress.gov, not by Civibrief. Summarized at the "Introduced in House" stage on April 30, 1973. It describes the bill, it is not the legal text.
Where is it in the process, and what happens next?
4 steps remain before this bill could become law.
The record's latest action, on April 30, 1973: Referred to House Committee on Interstate and Foreign Commerce.
- Clearing the committees it was referred to, and being scheduled for a floor vote
- Passage by the House
- Passage by the Senate
- The President's signature. If the President vetoes it, two-thirds of both chambers must vote to override.
How likely is it to become law?
Civibrief does not forecast outcomes and this page has no opinion about this one. What the record supports is a base rate, which is a fact about the whole pile, not a prediction about this measure.
In the 93rd Congress (1973-74), 651 of the 23,396 bills and joint resolutions introduced became law, about 2.8 percent. That count covers every measure at every stage, including the many that never left committee.
This one is not there yet: 4 steps are still outstanding, listed above.
Has anyone actually voted on it?
No. No roll call in this Congress cites this measure. That is the ordinary outcome: most measures never reach a recorded floor vote, and a committee ends most of them simply by not acting.
A vote is not the only thing that happens to a measure. Hearings, markups, and referrals are all recorded actions, and none of them is a vote of the full chamber.
Who is behind it?
ELLA GRASSO (D-CT) introduced it on April 30, 1973. No cosponsors are recorded.
Cosponsoring is a formal signature on the text. It is not a commitment to vote for the measure, it does not bind anyone's party, and a long list of cosponsors is a measure of attention rather than of prospects.
How long has it been in play?
It was introduced on April 30, 1973, 19539 days ago. The most recent recorded action was 19539 days ago, on April 30, 1973.
Measures do not carry over. Anything the 93rd Congress has not finished by January 3, 1975 dies when the term ends, and has to be introduced again from the start in the next Congress.
Every answer above is assembled from this measure's own record on Congress.gov and from published counts of what Congress has passed before. Civibrief does not predict outcomes and takes no position on any measure.
Vote history
- HouseIn committee, no floor vote yet
- SenateAwaits House passage
- PresidentAwaits both chambers