In case you missed it, Rep. Chris Deluzio is targeting junk fees in an effort to rein in the surprise charges. During the August recess, the Congressman met with small business owners across PA–17, touting the overwhelmingly popular Democratic initiative to hold corporations accountable and lower costs for hard-working families in Western Pennsylvania.
Rep. Chris Deluzio ordered a cup of cookies and cream and name-checked food delivery apps Grubhub and UberEats on Tuesday as he pitched a Democratic policy initiative during a visit at the Scoops ice cream store and other downtown businesses here.
Deluzio cited the apps as examples of big companies hitting consumers and small businesses with “junk fees,” a term President Joe Biden has seized on as an umbrella heading for efforts aimed at a host of industries, including banking, retail and travel.
The pitch by Deluzio, one of many being made by battleground Democrats this summer as corporate pushback starts to build, was welcomed by Scoops manager Nancy Denes, who said she had a “love-hate relationship” with delivery apps.
The shop uses Grubhub, but Denes said they “make less” on those orders than if someone orders directly from the shop. The charges can vary based on the contracts different Scoops shops in the Pittsburgh area have with the app, but she said a customer ordering through the app can result in a small business losing between 30 and 40 percent of a sale. She suggested that customers who want to order ahead for pickup call the store rather than go through an app.
Before stopping by a handful of businesses, Delzuio held a press conference at a pizza parlor where he highlighted what Democrats in Washington, he said, are doing to rein in the surprise charges faced by people and businesses. It’s an issue the first-term Democrat, who won his seat with 53 percent of the vote in a district Biden won by less than 6 points in 2020, says should be a focal point of Democrats’ effort to take control of the House next year.
“It is an easy story to tell. We’re on the side of you not getting ripped off and helping small businesses compete. That should be front and center of who we are as Democrats, and the Biden administration is doing this,” he said in an interview.
“It’s something I’m going to be talking about and certainly am glad to see President Biden push hard where he can through the FTC, CFPB, you name it,” he said, referring to the Federal Trade Commission and the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau.
During the press conference, Tavern Pizza general manager Andrew Marciniak said the store recently underwent major changes because delivery apps made its business model unsustainable.
“Since the pandemic, delivery fees and prices went up both for us and for our customers. These fees may seem small, but they really add up,” he said. “The apps gave us no control and made it so much harder to communicate with our customers.”
The shop opted to bring delivery service in-house and rebrand, and the changes have been successful, he said.
“I’m thankful that Rep. Deluzio and the Biden administration are bringing attention to this issue,” he said.
Deluzio said junk fees are another example of “big corporations ripping off the little guy.”
Democrats’ focus on this issue comes after audience testing by Navigator Research found it to be one of the most popular parts of Biden’s State of the Union address this year.
Deluzio on Tuesday noted his support of a measure that would require the Department of Transportation to write regulations that would prohibit airlines from charging passengers certain unreasonable fees. He also noted that he proposed an amendment to a bill to reauthorize the Federal Aviation Administration that would keep in place some consumer protections from deceptive airfare pricing, but the amendment was not adopted.
