House passes TICKET Act in an effort to increase transparency in pricing

The House passed the Transparency in Charges for Key Events Ticketing Act on Wednesday in an effort to increase price transparency for consumers.

The TICKET Act would require sellers to list the total cost of a ticket to buyers, including fees. They would also have to disclose whether the ticket they are selling are speculative — meaning not currently in their possession.

The bill would prohibit deceptive websites used by secondary sellers and require sellers to provide refunds if an event is canceled. It now moves on to the Senate.

The act is one of several recent efforts to curb unfair practices in the ticketing industry. There is a related bill in the Senate, also called the TICKET Act, that seeks to give consumers similar protections. A group of bipartisan senators also introduced the Fans First Act in December, which would increase cost transparency and prevent resellers who list tickets at exorbitant prices.

Lawmakers have sought to address consumer discontent toward the ticketing industry in recent years. Fans sued Ticketmaster in 2022 after the company struggled to accommodate the demand for Taylor Swift's Eras Tour. The Eras Tour incident led to a Senate Judiciary Committee hearing to examine Ticketmaster's outsize role in the industry.

The TICKET Act was first introduced by Rep. Gus Bilirakis, R-Fla., in June 2023. It was referred to the House Energy and Commerce Committee, where Bilirakis serves as the Innovation, Data and Commerce Subcommittee chair.

Bilirakis, subcommittee ranking member Jan Schakowsky, D-Ill., House Energy and Commerce Committee Chair Cathy McMorris Rodgers, R-Wash., and committee ranking member Frank Pallone Jr., D-N.J., released a joint statement on the passage of the TICKET Act on Wednesday.

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