A federal click-to-cancel framework introduced under the Biden administration was overturned by a judge in 2025 due to a procedural issue.
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The local subscription regulation could save residents an estimated $162.5 million annually, according to data from the Roosevelt Institute.
The junk fee rule will also cover hospitality and vehicle rentals, allowing visitors to lodge formal complaints regarding undisclosed hotel check-in charges.
The New York City council is additionally contemplating a separate ban on algorithmic surveillance pricing that adjusts costs based on personal spending habits.
The city will initiate a public comment window followed by an official hearing to finalize the pricing rules before the end of the year.
"People shouldn’t have to wait on hold for half an hour or send a certified letter or show up to a store in person in order to cancel a subscription," said Samuel AA Levine.
The current situation creates "a scenario where rather than competing on price, companies are competing on their ability to hide the true price.
That’s the worst kind of incentive" – and one that deeply distorts the market, Levine said.
"In the dawn of the Reagan era, the FTC and others in Washington said expressly that … markets could correct themselves, regulate themselves, they were going to stop writing rules," and allow companies to police their own behavior, Levine said.
"What it has gotten us is 40 years of deceptive pricing," he said.
If you are staying in a hotel in the city that hits you with undisclosed fees upon check-in, "you should complain to us," Levine said.
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"I certainly hope that we can get this rule done by the end of the year."
