Elsevier pockets a 30+ percent profit margin.[1] Nothing besides market power forces them to push this to the authors.

[1] https://www.relx.com/~/media/Files/R/RELX-Group/documents/re... (page 23)

I hope this (White House Office of Science and Technology Policy guidance) is another nail in Elsevier's coffin.

My lab's gotten hit by some hefty publication fees this year - it's painful for early career researchers, but in aggregate, this is a good thing.