Committee opens bill file on junk fees after Division of Consumer Protection describes ‘‘drip pricing’’ across industries

Katie Haas, director of the Division of Consumer Protection, told the committee June 18 that the division has seen a range of practices commonly called "junk fees"—hidden charges, mandatory add-ons and ‘‘drip pricing’’ where the advertised price increases during checkout. "Drip pricing is kind of as you go through the sales process, you get advertised a price, but then once you kind of get into it, they slowly start explaining that you're going to have to pay a little extra for this or a little extra for that," Haas said.

Haas and assistant director Blake Young gave examples from complaints and investigations: auto dealers adding mandatory warranty or docking fees near the end of a sale; food-delivery platforms showing different menu prices and then adding service or platform fees at checkout; apartment application and processing fees that can add hundreds of dollars in multi-occupant households; and living-wage or resort surcharges added at point of payment without clear upfront disclosure. The division cited a White House 2024 report and recent Federal Trade Commission and executive action aimed at ending certain hotel and event-ticketing fees; Haas recommended clearer disclosure rules that require businesses to include mandatory fees in the advertised total price.

Representatives discussed options and enforcement scope. Representative Thurston offered a motion "that we open a committee bill file, to see if there's something that we can do to help with this issue on a system wide basis." Director Haas told the committee the division could draft model language and review approaches other states have used, including broad bans with narrow carve-outs to accommodate industries with distinct statutory regulation. Committee members emphasized the goal of transparency rather than forbidding optional paid services outright.

The committee voted to open a committee bill file on junk fees; the chair called the vote after waiting for quorum and the motion passed unanimously. The committee directed staff and the division to prepare draft language reflecting a cross-industry approach focusing on disclosure and prohibiting mandatory undisclosed fees.

The division said enforcement options exist now under the Utah Consumer Sales Practices Act for deceptive pricing, but staff noted that some industries are expressly carved out of state consumer statutes and would require more targeted drafting. Members requested the division survey other states’ models (for example, Virginia’s disclosure language and states that cap delivery-platform fees) and return with draft text for committee consideration.