Minnesota House committee advances bill enforcing tougher rules on ticket fees, re-sellers
ST. PAUL, Minn. — A bill with tougher rules on fees and ticket re-sellers is moving swiftly through the Minnesota House.
House File 1989 — a nod to Taylor Swift's album — aims to boost consumer protections.
It requires cost transparency: Showing the total price, including all fees, upfront, not just minutes before making a purchase.
The bill's author, Rep. Kelly Moller, DFL-Shoreview, says she introduced it after the Ticketmaster meltdown for Taylor Swift's "Eras Tour" tickets. Millions of fans flocked to the website to buy tickets to see Swift, causing it to freeze or crash. The site received 3.5 billion requests in a single day, which caused the company to suspend sales and made it harder for fans to acquire face-value tickets.
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The event prompted a Senate Judiciary hearing in January 2023 and many lawmakers, including Minnesota Sen. Amy Klobuchar, called for a federal investigation of the ticket seller.
It bans "speculative ticketing" or re-sellers posting tickets for sale even though they aren't available yet. It also bans re-sellers from selling more than one copy of a ticket.
"By implementing measures to regulate ticket resellers and ensure transparency and fairness to ticket transactions, this bill seeks to level the playing field and empower consumers to make informed choices today to curb predatory pricing practices and establish mechanisms for recourse in cases of fraud or misrepresentation," said Todd Duesing, president of the Hennepin Theatre Trust.
The bill wrapped up committee stops in the House, getting it ready for a floor vote.
