SB3678 103RD GENERAL ASSEMBLY

LRB103 38700 SPS 68837 b

103RD GENERAL ASSEMBLY
State of Illinois
2023 and 2024
SB3678

Introduced 2/9/2024, by Sen. Steve Stadelman

SYNOPSIS AS INTRODUCED:

815 ILCS 414/1.5

was 720 ILCS 375/1.5

Amends the Ticket Sale and Resale Act. Provides that a person or entity that does not have actual or constructive possession of an event ticket shall not sell, offer for sale, or advertise for sale the event ticket unless specified conditions are satisfied. A ticket issuer, ticket broker, or ticket reseller shall not offer for sale an event ticket unless the ticket issuer, ticket broker, or ticket reseller makes specified disclosures. Sets forth provisions concerning refunds, if an event is cancelled or postponed, and advertisements. Defines terms.

A BILL FOR

AN ACT concerning business.

Be it enacted by the People of the State of Illinois, represented in the General Assembly:

Section 5. The Ticket Sale and Resale Act is amended by changing Section 1.5 as follows:

(815 ILCS 414/1.5) (was 720 ILCS 375/1.5)

Sec. 1.5. Sale of tickets at more than face value prohibited; exceptions.

(a) Except as otherwise provided in subsections (b), (c), (d), (e), and (f-5) of this Section and in Section 4, it is unlawful for any person, persons, firm or corporation to sell tickets for baseball games, football games, hockey games, theatre entertainments, or any other amusement for a price more than the price printed upon the face of said ticket, and the price of said ticket shall correspond with the same price shown at the box office or the office of original distribution.

(b) This Act does not apply to the resale of tickets of admission to a sporting event, theater, musical performance, or place of public entertainment or amusement of any kind for a price in excess of the printed box office ticket price by a ticket broker who meets all of the following requirements:

(1) The ticket broker is duly registered with the Office of the Secretary of State on a registration form provided by that Office. The registration must contain a certification that the ticket broker:

(A) engages in the resale of tickets on a regular and ongoing basis from one or more permanent or fixed locations located within this State;

(B) maintains as the principal business activity at those locations the resale of tickets;

(C) displays at those locations the ticket broker's registration;

(D) maintains at those locations a listing of the names and addresses of all persons employed by the ticket broker;

(E) is in compliance with all applicable federal, State, and local laws relating to its ticket selling activities, and that neither the ticket broker nor any of its employees within the preceding 12 months have been convicted of a violation of this Act; and

(F) meets the following requirements:

(i) the ticket broker maintains a toll free number specifically dedicated for Illinois consumer complaints and inquiries concerning ticket sales;

(ii) the ticket broker has adopted a code that advocates consumer protection that includes, at a minimum:

(a-1) consumer protection guidelines;

(b-1) a standard refund policy. In the event a refund is due, the ticket broker shall provide that refund without charge other than for reasonable delivery fees for the return of the tickets; and

(c-1) standards of professional conduct;

(iii) the ticket broker has adopted a procedure for the binding resolution of consumer complaints by an independent, disinterested third party and thereby submits to the jurisdiction of the State of Illinois; and

(iv) the ticket broker has established and maintains a consumer protection rebate fund in Illinois in an amount in excess of $100,000, which must be cash available for immediate disbursement for satisfaction of valid consumer complaints.

Alternatively, the ticket broker may fulfill the requirements of subparagraph (F) of this paragraph (1) if the ticket broker certifies that he or she belongs to a professional association organized under the laws of this State, or organized under the laws of any other state and authorized to conduct business in Illinois, that has been in existence for at least 3 years prior to the date of that broker's registration with the Office of the Secretary of State, and is specifically dedicated, for and on behalf of its members, to provide and maintain the consumer protection requirements of subparagraph (F) of this paragraph (1) to maintain the integrity of the ticket brokerage industry.

(2) (Blank).

(3) The ticket broker and his employees must not engage in the practice of selling, or attempting to sell, tickets for any event while sitting or standing near the facility at which the event is to be held or is being held unless the ticket broker or his or her employees are on property they own, lease, or have permission to occupy.

(4) The ticket broker must comply with all requirements of the Retailers' Occupation Tax Act and collect and remit all other applicable federal, State and local taxes in connection with the ticket broker's ticket selling activities.

(5) Beginning January 1, 1996, no ticket broker shall advertise for resale any tickets within this State unless the advertisement contains the name of the ticket broker and the Illinois registration number issued by the Office of the Secretary of State under this Section.

(6) Each ticket broker registered under this Act shall pay an annual registration fee of $100.

(c) This Act does not apply to the sale of tickets of admission to a sporting event, theater, musical performance, or place of public entertainment or amusement of any kind for a price in excess of the printed box office ticket price by a reseller engaged in interstate or intrastate commerce on an Internet auction listing service duly registered with the Office of the Secretary of State on a registration form provided by that Office. This subsection (c) applies to both sales through an online bid submission process and sales at a fixed price on the same website or interactive computer service as an Internet auction listing service.

This subsection (c) applies to resales described in this subsection only if the operator of the Internet auction listing service meets the following requirements:

(1) the operator maintains a listing of the names and addresses of its corporate officers;

(2) the operator is in compliance with all applicable federal, State, and local laws relating to ticket selling activities, and the operator's officers and directors have not been convicted of a violation of this Act within the preceding 12 months;

(3) the operator maintains, either itself or through an affiliate, a toll free number dedicated for consumer complaints;

(4) the operator provides consumer protections that include at a minimum:

(A) consumer protection guidelines;

(B) a standard refund policy that guarantees to all purchasers that it will provide and in fact provides a full refund of the amount paid by the purchaser (including, but not limited to, all fees, regardless of how characterized) if the following occurs:

(i) the ticketed event is cancelled and the purchaser returns the tickets to the seller or Internet auction listing service; however, reasonable delivery fees need not be refunded if the previously disclosed guarantee specifies that the fees will not be refunded if the event is cancelled;

(ii) the ticket received by the purchaser does not allow the purchaser to enter the ticketed event for reasons that may include, without limitation, that the ticket is counterfeit or that the ticket has been cancelled by the issuer due to non-payment, unless the ticket is cancelled due to an act or omission by such purchaser;

(iii) the ticket fails to conform to its description on the Internet auction listing service; or

(iv) the ticket seller willfully fails to send the ticket or tickets to the purchaser, or the ticket seller attempted to deliver the ticket or tickets to the purchaser in the manner required by the Internet auction listing service and the purchaser failed to receive the ticket or tickets; and

(C) standards of professional conduct;

(5) the operator has adopted an independent and disinterested dispute resolution procedure that allows resellers or purchasers to file complaints against the other and have those complaints mediated or resolved by a third party, and requires the resellers or purchasers to submit to the jurisdiction of the State of Illinois for complaints involving a ticketed event held in Illinois;

(6) the operator either:

(A) complies with all applicable requirements of the Retailers' Occupation Tax Act and collects and remits all applicable federal, State, and local taxes; or

(B) publishes a written notice on the website after the sale of one or more tickets that automatically informs the ticket reseller of the ticket reseller's potential legal obligation to pay any applicable local amusement tax in connection with the reseller's sale of tickets, and discloses to law enforcement or other government tax officials, without subpoena, the name, city, state, telephone number, e-mail address, user ID history, fraud complaints, and bidding and listing history of any specifically identified reseller or purchaser upon the receipt of a verified request from law enforcement or other government tax officials relating to a criminal investigation or alleged illegal activity; and

(7) the operator either:

(A) has established and maintains a consumer protection rebate fund in Illinois in an amount in excess of $100,000, which must be cash available for immediate disbursement for satisfaction of valid consumer complaints; or

(B) has obtained and maintains in force an errors and omissions insurance policy that provides at least $100,000 in coverage.

(d) This Act does not apply to the resale of tickets of admission to a sporting event, theater, musical performance, or place of public entertainment or amusement of any kind for a price in excess of the printed box office ticket price conducted at an auction solely by or for a not-for-profit organization for charitable purposes under clause (a)(1) of Section 10-1 of the Auction License Act.

(e) This Act does not apply to the resale of a ticket for admission to a baseball game, football game, hockey game, theatre entertainment, or any other amusement for a price more than the price printed on the face of the ticket and for more than the price of the ticket at the box office if the resale is made through an Internet website whose operator meets the following requirements:

(1) the operator has a business presence and physical street address in the State of Illinois and clearly and conspicuously posts that address on the website;

(2) the operator maintains a listing of the names of the operator's directors and officers, and is duly registered with the Office of the Secretary of State on a registration form provided by that Office;

(3) the operator is in compliance with all applicable federal, State, and local laws relating to its ticket reselling activities regulated under this Act, and the operator's officers and directors have not been convicted of a violation of this Act within the preceding 12 months;

(4) the operator maintains a toll free number specifically dedicated for consumer complaints and inquiries regarding ticket resales made through the website;

(5) the operator either:

(A) has established and maintains a consumer protection rebate fund in Illinois in an amount in excess of $100,000, which must be cash available for immediate disbursement for satisfaction of valid consumer complaints; or

(B) has obtained and maintains in force an errors and omissions policy of insurance in the minimum amount of $100,000 for the satisfaction of valid consumer complaints;

(6) the operator has adopted an independent and disinterested dispute resolution procedure that allows resellers or purchasers to file complaints against the other and have those complaints mediated or resolved by a third party, and requires the resellers or purchasers to submit to the jurisdiction of the State of Illinois for complaints involving a ticketed event held in Illinois;

(7) the operator either:

(A) complies with all applicable requirements of the Retailers' Occupation Tax Act and collects and remits all applicable federal, State, and local taxes; or

(B) publishes a written notice on the website after the sale of one or more tickets that automatically informs the ticket reseller of the ticket reseller's potential legal obligation to pay any applicable local amusement tax in connection with the reseller's sale of tickets, and discloses to law enforcement or other government tax officials, without subpoena, the name, city, state, telephone number, e-mail address, user ID history, fraud complaints, and bidding and listing history of any specifically identified reseller or purchaser upon the receipt of a verified request from law enforcement or other government tax officials relating to a criminal investigation or alleged illegal activity; and

(8) the operator guarantees to all purchasers that it will provide and in fact provides a full refund of the amount paid by the purchaser (including, but not limited to, all fees, regardless of how characterized) if any of the following occurs:

(A) the ticketed event is cancelled and the purchaser returns the tickets to the website operator; however, reasonable delivery fees need not be refunded if the previously disclosed guarantee specifies that the fees will not be refunded if the event is cancelled;

(B) the ticket received by the purchaser does not allow the purchaser to enter the ticketed event for reasons that may include, without limitation, that the ticket is counterfeit or that the ticket has been cancelled by the issuer due to non-payment, unless the ticket is cancelled due to an act or omission by the purchaser;

(C) the ticket fails to conform to its description on the website; or

(D) the ticket seller willfully fails to send the ticket or tickets to the purchaser, or the ticket seller attempted to deliver the ticket or tickets to the purchaser in the manner required by the website operator and the purchaser failed to receive the ticket or tickets.

Nothing in this subsection (e) shall be deemed to imply any limitation on ticket sales made in accordance with subsections (b), (c), and (d) of this Section or any limitation on sales made in accordance with Section 4.

(f) The provisions of subsections (b), (c), (d), and (e) of this Section apply only to the resale of a ticket after the initial sale of that ticket. No reseller of a ticket may refuse to sell tickets to another ticket reseller solely on the basis that the purchaser is a ticket reseller or ticket broker authorized to resell tickets pursuant to this Act.

(f-5) In addition to the requirements imposed under subsections (b), (c), (d), (e), and (f) of this Section, ticket brokers and resellers must comply with the requirements of this subsection. Before accepting any payment from a purchaser, a ticket broker or reseller must disclose to the purchaser in a clear, conspicuous, and readily noticeable manner the following information:

(1) the registered name and city of the event venue;

(2) that the ticket broker or reseller is not the event venue box office or its licensed ticket agent, but is, instead, a ticket broker or reseller and that lost or stolen tickets may be reissued only by ticket brokers or resellers;

(3) whether it is registered under this Act; and

(4) its refund policy, name, and contact information.

Before selling and accepting payment for a ticket, a ticket broker or reseller must require the purchaser to acknowledge by an affirmative act the disclosures required under this subsection. The disclosures required by this subsection must be made in a clear and conspicuous manner, appear together, and be preceded by the heading "IMPORTANT NOTICE" which must be in bold face font that is larger than the font size of the required disclosures.

Ticket brokers and resellers must guarantee a full refund of the amount paid by the purchaser, including handling and delivery fees, if any of the following occurs:

(1) the ticket received by the purchaser does not grant the purchaser admission to the event described on the ticket, unless it is due to an act or omission by the purchaser;

(2) the ticket fails to conform substantially to its description as advertised; or

(3) the event for which the ticket has been resold is cancelled and not rescheduled.

This subsection (f-5) does not apply to an Internet auction listing service.

(f-10) A person or entity that does not have actual or constructive possession of an event ticket shall not sell, offer for sale, or advertise for sale the event ticket. Nothing in this subsection shall prohibit any person or entity from offering a service to a consumer to obtain an event ticket on behalf of the consumer, if the person or entity complies with the following:

(1) does not market or list the service as an event ticket;

(2) lists the price for the service separately from the total event ticket price paid by the service provider for the event ticket in any advertisement, marketing, price list, social media promotion, or other interface that displays a price for the service;

(3) clearly and conspicuously discloses, prior to selection of the service, that the service is not an event ticket and that the purchase of the service does not guarantee a ticket to the event; and

(4) does not obtain more tickets in each transaction than the numerical limitations for tickets set by the venue and artist for each respective event; and

If the person or entity is unable to obtain the specified event ticket for the consumer, the person or entity shall provide the consumer with a full refund for the total cost of the service to obtain the ticket, including any ancillary fees or taxes, or, subject to availability, a replacement event ticket in the same or a comparable location with the approval of the consumer.

(f-15) A ticket issuer, ticket broker, or ticket reseller shall not offer for sale an event ticket unless the ticket issuer, ticket broker, or ticket reseller:

(1) clearly and conspicuously:

(A) displays the total event ticket price in any advertisement, marketing, price list, social media promotion, or other interface that displays a price for the event ticket; and

(B) discloses to a consumer who seeks to purchase an event ticket:

(i) the total event ticket price at the time the ticket is first displayed to the individual and anytime throughout the ticket purchasing process, including an itemized breakdown of the face value of the event ticket and all applicable taxes and ancillary fees;

(ii) the space within the venue that the event ticket entitles the bearer to occupy for the event, whether that is general admission or a specific seat or section;

(iii) the refund policies and how to obtain a refund, including under what circumstances a full refund will be issued and how to obtain a full refund of the total cost of the ticket, event ticket fees, ancillary fees, and taxes;

(iv) the date and means of delivery for the event ticket;

(v) any restrictions on resale of the event ticket under the terms and conditions of the event ticket; and

(vi) a link to the full terms and conditions of the event ticket to any individual who seeks to purchase an event ticket prior to purchase.

If the event ticket is an electronic ticket, the ticket issuer, ticket broker, or ticket reseller shall deliver written proof of purchase to the purchaser as soon as is practicable, and no later than 24 hours, after the purchase of the event ticket. The written proof of purchase shall include the disclosures required under paragraph (B).

(f-20) Notwithstanding any provision of this Section, if an event is canceled or postponed a ticket issuer, ticket broker, or ticket reseller shall provide the consumer, at the option of the purchaser:

(1) a full refund for the total cost of the event ticket, including event ticket fees, ancillary fees, and taxes; or

(2) subject to availability and the approval of the consumer, if the event is postponed, a replacement event ticket, in the same or a comparable location, once the event has been rescheduled.

The refund described in paragraph (1) shall not apply if an event is canceled due to a cause beyond the reasonable control of the event organizer or ticket issuer, including a natural disaster, civil disturbance, or otherwise unforeseeable impediment.

(f-25) A ticket issuer, ticket broker, or ticket reseller, or operator of any website purporting to sell or offer for sale event tickets shall not:

(1) use any artist name, venue name, or event organizer name or a graphic, marketing logo, image, or other intellectual property of the artist, venue, or event organizer in any promotional materials, social media promotions, or on an Internet website without the prior authorization of the artist, venue, or event organizer;

(2) use any name substantially similar to an artist name, venue name, or event organizer name, including a misspelling of the name; or

(3) state or imply that the ticket issuer, ticket broker, or ticket reseller, or operator of any website purporting to sell or offer for sale event tickets is affiliated with or endorsed by an artist name, venue name, or event, including by using words such as "official" in promotional materials, social media promotions, search engine optimization, paid advertising, Internet website, without written consent of the venue, team, or artist, as applicable.

This subsection does not prohibit a ticket issuer, ticket broker, or ticket reseller from using text containing the name of an artist, venue, or event organizers to describe an event, identify the location where an event will occur, or provide information identifying the space within the venue that an event ticket would entitle the bearer to occupy for an event.

(f-30) As used in this Section:

"Ancillary fee" means any additional charge added to the face value of an event ticket, excluding taxes.

"Artist" means any performer, musician, comedian, athlete, producer, ensemble, or production entity of a theatrical production, sports team owner, or similar individual or entity that contracts with an event organizer to put on an event.

"Event ticket" means any physical, electronic, or other form of a certificate, document, voucher, token, or other evidence indicating that a person has a license to enter an event venue or occupy a particular seat or area in an event venue with respect to one or more events or an entitlement to purchase a license with respect to one or more future events.

"Event ticket fee" means a charge that must be paid in addition to the face value price of the ticker in order to obtain an event ticket from a ticket issuer, secondary market ticket issuer, or secondary market ticket exchange, seller, or reseller, including any ancillary fee, service fee, charge and order processing fee, delivery fee, facility charge fee, and any other charge. "Event ticket fee" does not include any charge or fee for an optional product or service associated with the event that may be selected by a purchaser of an event ticket.

"Face value" means the initial or acquisition price for the primary sale of the event ticket, exclusive of any taxes or ancillary fees.

"Optional product or service" means a product or service that an individual does not need to purchase to use or take possession of an event ticket.

"Total event ticket price" means the total cost of the event ticket, including the face value price and any ancillary fees but excluding taxes.

(g) The provisions of Public Act 89-406 are severable under Section 1.31 of the Statute on Statutes.

(h) The provisions of this amendatory Act of the 94th General Assembly are severable under Section 1.31 of the Statute on Statutes.

(Source: P.A. 99-431, eff. 1-1-16; 100-534, eff. 9-22-17.)