President Joe Biden touted that the proposed rule to eliminate "junk fees" toward consumers will give breathing room for American families.
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00:00 One of the key things I've asked the Council to tackle
00:02 are the unfair fees known as "junk fees" --
00:06 those hidden charges that companies sneak into your bill
00:10 to make you pay more because they can --
00:13 just simply because they can.
00:15 Charges that are taking real money
00:16 out of the pockets of American families.
00:18 These junk fees can add up hundreds of dollars,
00:21 weighing down family budgets,
00:23 making it harder to pay family bills.
00:26 These junk fees may not matter to the wealthy,
00:29 but they sure matter to working folks in homes
00:32 like the one I grew up in.
00:33 Today, I'm proud to announce that my administration
00:35 is taking our most comprehensive action ever
00:38 to eliminate junk fees and -- and --
00:40 and fees in industries and sectors across the board,
00:44 across the entire economy.
00:47 You know, if these rules are finalized,
00:49 they won't just be voluntarily; they'll be made mandatory.
00:53 Mandatory. We do more than embarrass the company;
00:55 we make them mandatory.
00:57 (Applause.)
00:58 Here's how.
00:59 The Federal Trade Commission is proposing a new rule
01:02 that would ban hidden fees across the economy
01:05 and require companies to show consumers
01:08 the all-in pricing up front -- up front.
01:12 That includes what these fees are for,
01:17 how much they amount to in full,
01:19 and whether they are refundable.
01:21 Research shows that without -- without realizing it,
01:26 folks can end up paying as much as 20 percent more
01:29 because of hidden junk fees than they would have paid
01:32 if they could see the full price up front
01:34 and compare it with other options.
01:36 It's wrong. It's wrong.
01:38 It's just taking advantage of people.
01:40 And it makes it harder for honest businesses
01:42 who are trying to do the right thing
01:44 to compete with dishonest companies
01:46 who trick customers into thinking their price are lower
01:49 when they, in fact, are not.
01:50 Today's actions are part of my broader economic vision.
01:54 To move from trickle-down economics
01:56 to what everyone in the Wall Street Journal
01:58 and the Financial Times began to call "binomics."
02:01 I don't think they meant it as a compliment at first.
02:03 (Applause.)
02:05 It's about growing the economy from the middle out
02:07 and the bottom up, not the top down.