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- Biden's Covid plan released Thursday will double fines for travelers who violate TSA mask mandates.
- It raises the minimum fine to $500 and the maximum fine to $3000 for repeat offenders.
- Clashes over masks make up more than 75% of unruly passenger complaints during air travel.
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President Biden's COVID-19 action plan released Thursday will double fines for travelers who violate the TSA mask mandates covering air travel and some modes of public transportation.
Passengers who do not comply with the mask-wearing policies currently face fines starting at $250 and increasing up to $1,500 for repeat offenders. The new guidelines will raise the minimum fine to $500 and the maximum fine to $3000.
Since January, the Federal Aviation Agency has proposed fines of more than $682,000 against unruly passengers.
Clashes over masks make up more than 75% of unruly passenger complaints, as flight attendants describe "unprecedented violence" on the job, Insider's Sarah Jackson reported in July.
The FAA has received 3,271 unruly passenger reports since the start of 2021. Roughly 2,475 of those reports come from passengers defying the federal mask mandate.
In late August, the TSA extended its mask requirement for air and ground travel through January 18, 2022.
The fine increase is one of six action items listed under the plan's "Increasing Testing and Requiring Masking" component.
The six sections of the plan include:
- Vaccinating the Unvaccinated
- Furthering Protection for the Vaccinated
- Keeping Schools Safely Open
- Increasing Testing and Requiring Masking
- Protecting Our Economic Recovery
- Improving Care for Those with COVID-19
According to the plan, the increased fines will help "ensure that masking requirements remain in place on the other modes of transportation as we continue to battle COVID-19."