We’re within the fourth quarter of the 118th Congress and the clock is ticking quick. There are just a few extra legislative days for Congress to cross dozens of payments earlier than this session concludes and the subsequent Congress should begin drafting payments from scratch. One such invoice is HR 3950, the Transparency In Fees for Key Occasions Ticketing Act (TICKET Act). It might repair points which have bedeviled the stay occasion trade for many years. It might require all-in pricing of tickets, ban speculative ticketing, prohibit misleading web sites, require refunds for canceled or postponed exhibits, and require the Federal Commerce Fee to report on the prevalence of bots getting used to buy tickets.
This invoice has been two years within the making. The Senate Judiciary Committee held the primary listening to of the 118th Congress in January 2023, following the meltdown of Ticketmaster’s system when tickets to Taylor Swift’s Eras Tour went on sale. The listening to highlighted many well-known issues within the trade. Since then, members of Congress have launched greater than a half-dozen ticketing-related payments to deal with these issues. Nonetheless, just one invoice has risen to the highest: the TICKET Act (HR 3950).
The bipartisan TICKET Act, launched by Reps. Jan Schakowsky and Gus Bilirakis unanimously handed the Home Vitality and Commerce Committee, obtained the endorsement of just about each stay occasion stakeholder concerned within the coverage debate, after which handed the Home 388-24 by a wider margin than the latest persevering with decision obtained. The TICKET Act is much more common than funding our authorities.
Client safety teams referred to as the invoice, “a truly comprehensive reform package.” The Recording Academy mentioned it was “a significant step forward toward improving the concert ticket marketplace. The Coalition for Ticket Fairness said that “[b]y empowering consumers, this bill will help lead to a better ticket buying experience and a healthier marketplace.” And, the Repair the Tix Coalition, made up of artists and impartial venues mentioned the TICKET Act was “the most comprehensive protections for artists and fans in ticketing that we have seen in years.”
The invoice has common assist—so why is it languishing within the Senate? Legislative inertia and good old school Senate politics are partly in charge, however monopoly-aligned particular pursuits within the trade are additionally in search of to gum up the works, hoping to get their most popular payments handed, even when these payments don’t have consensus assist. If the TICKET Act passes this Congress, followers might see all-in pricing for tickets to music festivals, baseball video games, and theater productions as quickly as subsequent summer time. As a substitute, what ought to be a straightforward invoice to cross in a traditionally unproductive Congress is at risk of turning into a case examine within the folly of letting the proper be the enemy of the general public good.
Congress is working out of time to do one thing good for followers who’ve suffered lengthy sufficient with complicated procuring experiences, out-of-control charges, and misleading resale practices. An omnibus invoice on the finish of the yr is the final legislative automobile that the TICKET Act can trip to President Joe Biden’s desk. It would simply be the final alternative to provide followers, venues, artists, and client advocates what they’ve been asking for the final two years: a complete client safety package deal for stay event-goers. The clock is ticking. This invoice ought to be a layup. It’s time for Congress to place it within the bucket.
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