The United States House of Representatives passed the Transparency in Charges for Key Events Ticketing (TICKET) Act yesterday (May 15), marking a key step in the bill’s journey to becoming a law. A summary of the bill, written by the Congressional Research Service of the Library of Congress, reads as follows:
Representatives Jan Schakowsky, an Illinois Democrat, and Gus Bilirakis, a Florida Republican, introduced the TICKET Act in June 2023. Later in the year, Senators Amy Klobuchar and John Cornyn introduced the Fans First Act, which also calls for more disclosure about ticket sales. The bill is awaiting a Senate vote.
The TICKET Act has bipartisan support, as well as support from independent groups such as the Fix the Tix Coalition and National Independent Venue Association (NIVA). In a statement shared with Pitchfork, the Fix the Tix Coalition said, “The bill provides transparency with all-in pricing, and takes important steps to combat speculative tickets and deceptive websites.” The group continued, “The live entertainment ecosystem is counting on Congress to act in the best interests of fans to restore transparency and trust to our country’s broken ticketing system.”
NIVA’s executive director, Stephen Parker, added, “We commend House passage of H.R. 3950, the TICKET Act, which will help to improve the ticket buying experience for fans, to protect the livelihoods of artists, and to preserve independent venues across the nation.”
Additional support for the TICKET Act comes from Nathaniel Marro of the National Independent Talent Organization (NITO), who commended the House for passing the act. He added, “NITO now calls on the Senate to pass the Fans First Act, which includes a total ban on speculative tickets and requires itemized ticket fees at the beginning of purchase so that fans know the price they will pay and the price the artist intended. We will continue our work to move comprehensive ticket legislation forward.”
In addition, Kevin Erickson, the director of Future of Music Coalition, told Pitchfork:
Harvey Mason Jr., the CEO of the Recording Academy, also lauded the House of Representatives’ passage of the TICKET Act, calling it “a significant step forward toward improving the concert ticket marketplace.”
Source : Pitchfork