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Texas Senator calls for ticketing legislation
Texas Senator John Cornyn and Houston Sports Executives teamed up to discuss changes for ticket resales. The reforms would apply to live sporting events and concerts. This comes after the ticket sales for Taylor Swift Era's Tour went disastrously for so many fans. FOX 26's Natalie Hee explains the proposed legislation.
HOUSTON - Senator John Cornyn and Houston sports executives teamed up to discuss changes for overpriced ticket resales for live sporting events and concerts.
This comes after ticket sales for Taylor Swift’s Eras Tour went disastrously for so many fans last year.
In the words of Taylor Swift herself, "Now we got problems."
Every Swiftie, like Zoe Alterman, has their own horror story.
"Right before the show, the cheapest ticket I could find on any resale site was over $1,000. And unfortunately, it just wasn’t practical for me and my friends. And it isn’t practical for most people. I feel like the system is stacked against us," Alterman said.
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Other Houstonians complained about the burden on their wallets.
"Tickets are too high, you know with concerts, right when they come out, they’re going to be $600 to $350 or something," said Joshua Bell. "You pretty much have to wait until the day of the event to see if you could get something cheap."
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"I think resellers are taking advantage a little bit," said Evan Banchs.
"They gotta find a way to get everyone involved. Everyone deserves to go to these concerts and games. We’re all humans, you know what I mean," said Dylan Loving.
On Wednesday, U.S. Senator John Cornyn (R-TX) met with executives from the Astros, Rockets, Texans, Dynamo, Dash, Symphony, and the Harris County Sports Authority, to figure out how to improve transparency for ticket prices and provide more protection for the fans.
"The bill that I’m working on is called FANS First. Primarily, what we’re focused on is greater transparency and integrity of the system," Cornyn.
Sen. Cornyn is working with Sen. Amy Klobuchar (D-MN) to pass bipartisan legislation that would crack down on those who engage in predatory ticketing practices.
Cornyn said he hopes to get the Fans First bill passed before the World Cup heads to North America in 2026.
The FANS First Act aims to provide:
- Transparency for Ticket Pricing: Require all live event ticket sellers and resellers to disclose total cost of the ticket, including fees, when the fan initially selects a ticket for purchase. Require a breakdown of the ticket cost. Require refund policies and any restrictions on resale to be disclosed.
- Require all live event ticket sellers and resellers to disclose total cost of the ticket, including fees, when the fan initially selects a ticket for purchase.
- Require a breakdown of the ticket cost.
- Require refund policies and any restrictions on resale to be disclosed.
- Increased Consumer Protection: Prohibit a secondary ticketing exchange platform from using an artist’s or venue’s name or intellectual property to trick a fan into believing they are purchasing a live event ticket from the primary ticket issuer. Prohibit the sale of a ticket that the reseller represents they possess when they do not, known as a speculative or "spec" ticket.
- Prohibit a secondary ticketing exchange platform from using an artist’s or venue’s name or intellectual property to trick a fan into believing they are purchasing a live event ticket from the primary ticket issuer.
- Prohibit the sale of a ticket that the reseller represents they possess when they do not, known as a speculative or "spec" ticket.
- Restored Market Integrity for Fans, Artists, and Venues: Reaffirm that the artist, team, or venue retain the right, as they do in current law, to set the terms of the ticket. Explicitly state that selling or reselling an event ticket in violation of the terms and conditions of the ticket is unlawful. Ensure all live event tickets are transferable for the face value of the ticket and protects marketplace integrity. Strengthen the Better Online Ticket Sales (BOTS) Act, signed into law in 2016, to further prohibit the use of bots to purchase tickets online.
- Reaffirm that the artist, team, or venue retain the right, as they do in current law, to set the terms of the ticket.
- Explicitly state that selling or reselling an event ticket in violation of the terms and conditions of the ticket is unlawful.
- Ensure all live event tickets are transferable for the face value of the ticket and protects marketplace integrity.
- Strengthen the Better Online Ticket Sales (BOTS) Act, signed into law in 2016, to further prohibit the use of bots to purchase tickets online.
- Enforcement Mechanisms for Bad Actors: Impose civil penalties on resellers engaging in illegal ticket sale practices, create a reporting website for fans to file complaints, and task the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) and State Attorneys General with enforcement. Require reporting of ticketing violations from ticketing companies to the FTC and require the FBI to share ticketing violations with them.
- Impose civil penalties on resellers engaging in illegal ticket sale practices, create a reporting website for fans to file complaints, and task the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) and State Attorneys General with enforcement.
- Require reporting of ticketing violations from ticketing companies to the FTC and require the FBI to share ticketing violations with them.