As the U.S. Department of Transportation’s new rule governing charter broker practices is set to take effect on February 14, the revisions have raised some questions from schedulers and dispatchers, NBAA said.

The association will address those questions during a session on Wednesday during the 2019 Schedulers & Dispatchers Conference. The first half of the session, scheduled for 1 p.m., will cover the responsibility of charter brokers under the new requirements, while the second half at 3:30 will address requirements for operators and direct air carriers.

Released in September, the rule creates a new indirect air carrier category, calling for disclosures from both brokers and air taxis to consumers, and spells out some of what would constitute unfair or deceptive practices.

“The new rules require the broker to give specific notices of their capacity as an agent of the customer, an agent of the carrier or as an indirect air carrier,” said Dayton Lehman, a former DOT official who is now president of the Aviation Group at Capitol Business Solutions. “It’s not uncommon for schedulers to fill one or more of those roles, and the new rules raise questions as to who is ultimately responsible for a particular requirement on any given flight.”

Other questions surround refund requirements for inadequate disclosures, responsibilities of jet card providers and membership programs, and disclosures of pricing incentives.