The bill at issue is a bipartisan bill (2 Democrats and 2 Republican sponsors). It has been in the works for nearly a year and covers a variety of airline issues. The Cruz/Cantwell bill creates a streamlined process for requesting refunds rather than the current patchwork process required because many tickets are purchased through travel agents, third party booking sites etc, so it is an improvement over current processes, and was not a response to Biden's plan.

Biden's new rule goes a step further, requiring automatic refunds by the airlines. That sounds like a great idea, until you consider the way tickets are booked, Biden's plan may be unrealistic to implement. For example, how can DeltaAirlines automatically refund your credit card if you bought the ticket through Hotwire? What if it was part of an Expedia vacation package?

I don't know what the best course of action is on this, but this isn't the Santa Claus vs Grinch story the media is making it out to be.

The Cantwell/Cruz bill:

42305. Refunds for cancelled or significantly delayed or changed flights

"(a) In general."In the case of a passenger that holds a nonrefundable ticket on a scheduled flight to, from, or within the United States, an air carrier or a foreign air carrier shall, upon request of the passenger, promptly provide a full refund, including any taxes and ancillary fees, for the fare such carrier collected for any cancelled flight or significantly delayed or changed flight where the passenger chooses not to"

"(1) fly on the significantly delayed or changed flight or accept rebooking on an alternative flight; or

"(2) accept any voucher, credit, or other form of compensation offered by the air carrier or foreign air carrier pursuant to subsection (c).

"(b) Timing of refund."Any refund required under subsection (a) shall be issued by the air carrier or foreign air carrier"

"(1) in the case of a ticket purchased with a credit card, not later than 7 business days after the request for the refund; or

"(2) in the case of a ticket purchased with cash or another form of payment, not later than 20 days after the request for the refund.

"(c) Alternative to refund."An air carrier and a foreign air carrier may offer a voucher, credit, or other form of compensation as an alternative to providing a refund required by subsection (a) but only if the offer includes a clear and conspicuous notice of"

"(1) the terms of the offer; and

"(2) the passenger's right to a full refund under this section.

"(d) Significantly delayed or changed flight."In defining significantly delayed or changed flight' for purposes of this section, the Secretary shall ensure that such term includes, at a minimum, a flight where the passenger arrives at a destination airport"

"(1) in the case of a domestic flight, 3 or more hours after the original scheduled arrival time; and

"(2) in the case of an international flight, 6 or more hours after the original scheduled arrival time.

"(e) Application to ticket agents."Not later than 1 year after the date of enactment of this section, the Secretary of Transportation shall issue a final rule to apply refund requirements to ticket agents in the case of cancelled flights and significantly delayed or changed flights.

" 42306. Refund portal

"(a) In general."Not later than the date that is 270 days after the date of enactment of this section, the Secretary of Transportation shall require covered entities to prominently display at the top of the homepage of the covered entity's public internet website a link that passengers eligible for a refund may use to request a refund.

"(b) Covered entity defined."In this subsection, the term covered entity' means"

"(1) an air carrier or foreign air carrier that provides scheduled passenger air transportation by operating an aircraft that as originally designed has a passenger capacity of 30 or more seats; and

"(2) a ticket agent that sells scheduled passenger service on an aircraft that as originally designed has a passenger capacity of 30 or more seats.".

(b) Clerical amendment."The analysis for chapter 423 of title 49, United States Code, is amended by inserting after the item relating to section 42304 the following:

Bidens Rule:

The final rule improves the passenger experience by requiring refunds to be:

Automatic: Airlines must automatically issue refunds without passengers having to explicitly request them or jump through hoops.

Prompt: Airlines and ticket agents must issue refunds within seven business days of refunds becoming due for credit card purchases and 20 calendar days for other payment methods.

Cash or original form of payment: Airlines and ticket agents must provide refunds in cash or whatever original payment method the individual used to make the purchase, such as credit card or airline miles. Airlines may not substitute vouchers, travel credits, or other forms of compensation unless the passenger affirmatively chooses to accept alternative compensation.

Full amount: Airlines and ticket agents must provide full refunds of the ticket purchase price, minus the value of any portion of transportation already used. The refunds must include all government-imposed taxes and fees and airline-imposed fees, regardless of whether the taxes or fees are refundable to airlines.

So concerning the refunds, Biden's proposal is nearly identical to the bill, the timelines are the same. The only apparent difference is that that Bidens rule makes refunds "automatic" (passenger does not have to "explicitly request it") whereas Cantwell/Cruz makes refunds "upon request" and requires Airlines to prominenly display a link to a refund portal.

So,if you get an "automatic refund" without asking, for the purchase price of your ticket, will it be enough to pay for a last minute ticket on another flight to get to your destination?

I don't see a lot of practical difference between the Biden plan and the Cantwell/Cruz plan, from the perspective of a stranded traveler. You are going to have a conversation with the airline and t you are going to choose between a rebooking on another flight or a refund so you can find another way to where you are going. Most people are going to accept the rebooking anyway.