Consumer Protection and Fan Advocacy Groups Call on State Senate to Reject House Ticketing Legislation, Return Next Year with Pro-Consumer Bill and Begin the Process with Fan Advocates at the Table

For Immediate Release
April 4, 2024
Contact: Karl Howley khowley@vision360partners.com

Annapolis, MD – Following maneuvers this week in the Maryland House Economic Matters Committee to change SB 539, legislation passed in the State Senate on March 15, and the House passage HB 701 on Wednesday, a bill that provides handouts requested by a small cohort of concert venues in the state and that would punish Maryland ticketholders with fines and jail time if they resell their sports and concert their tickets at a profit, the Ticket Buyer Bill of Rights coalition is now calling on the Maryland State Senate to reject the House of Delegates legislation and revisit ticketing reform next year, inviting consumer advocates at the start of the process.

“The proposed amendments by the House committee make no sense, punishing sports fans who buy their tickets on a per game basis and don’t have the thousands of extra dollars it costs to buy a season ticket package, and making it a crime punishable with fines and jail times if they sell some of their tickets and make some profit to help pay for other expenses. The Senate’s version could have made Maryland a national leader in consumer protection, sadly due to special interests and these last minute handouts, the Legislature should reject this legislation and work with consumer protection organizations next year to craft pro-fan legislation,” said Brian Hess, Executive Director of the Sports Fans Coalition.

“The House of Delegates just set the stage for fans to get ripped off in shadow-market ticket sales and gave its approval for an increase in monopolistic price and fee gouging by venue box offices,” said Brian Berry, Advocacy Director of Protect Ticket Rights. “It’s bad public policy to fine or jail a ticketholder for selling his or her tickets while turning a blind eye to corporate box offices that dynamically price tickets where it might charge $1,000 for tickets that were priced at $100 one day earlier,” continued Berry. 

While not perfect, SB 539 as passed by the State Senate on March 15 would mandate all-in pricing and ban the speculative sale tickets that mislead consumers into believing they are purchasing a ticket at the time of payment when in fact they are purchasing the future promise of a ticket. These are two important market reforms that will make the ticketing market more transparent for Maryland event goers, build upon the state’s current ticketing laws, and make Maryland a national leader in consumer protections for live event fans. The Senate also removed the criminalization of ticket resale. 

On Tuesday, April 2, the House of Delegates’ Economic Matters Committee shirked the Senate-passed SB 539 and instead offered amendments that the Senate already struck down, most notably amendments that make it a crime to resell tickets at a price higher than originally paid. On Wednesday, April 3, the House of Delegates advanced its own legislation, HB 701, which includes the same punishments for ticketholders who resell their tickets. Importantly, while a small cohort of venues has been the driving force behind HB 701, other music venues and some professional sports teams and leagues have opposed the legislation since the start. 

Read the Ticket Buyer Bill of Rights press release on the March passage of an amended SB 539 HERE. 

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The Ticket Buyer Bill of Rights Coalition was founded in February 2023 to serve as a framework for ticketing legislation that can improve the live events ticketing market that serves millions of fans each year. The Bill of Rights features five pillars; The Right to Transferability, The Right to Transparency, The Right to Set the Price, The Right to a Fair Marketplace and The Right to Recourse. The Ticket Buyer Bill of Rights is endorsed by Economic Action Maryland, National Consumers League, Consumer Federation of America, Sports Fans Coalition, Fan Freedom, Protect Ticket Rights, the National Association of Consumer Advocates, Virginia Citizens Consumer Council, Public Knowledge, Consumer Action, Consumer Federation of California, and the Center for New Liberalism. Visit us at www.ticketbuyerbillofrights.org.