On August 2, New York Governor Eliot Spitzer signed an airline passengers' bill of rights into law, making New York the first state in the United States with such a bill.

The measure requires airlines to provide passengers at New York airports with critical supplies to make their delays more tolerable. It also creates an Airline Consumer Advocate Office to investigate passenger complaints.

The bill comes in the wake of the Valentine's Day storm when thousands of passengers were stranded in planes on the tarmac for as much as 10 hours without water, food, clean restrooms, or ventilated air.

JetBlue passengers were particularly hard hit.

If an airline is found in violation of the law, it could face penalties of up to US$1,000 per passenger.

The law will take effect on New Year's Day.