Bill Text: CA AB8 | 2023-2024 | Regular Session | Amended

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Bill Title: Ticket sellers.

Spectrum: Strong Partisan Bill (Democrat 17-1)

Status: (Engrossed) 2024-08-15 - In committee: Held under submission. [AB8 Detail]

Download: California-2023-AB8-Amended.html

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Amended  IN  Senate  June 19, 2023

Amended  IN  Assembly  April 27, 2023

Amended  IN  Assembly  March 30, 2023

CALIFORNIA LEGISLATURE— 2023–2024 REGULAR SESSION

Assembly Bill

No. 8

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Introduced by Assembly Members Friedman and Irwin
(Coauthors: Assembly Members Addis, Berman, Boerner, Grayson, Lee, McCarty, Ortega, Papan, Ting, Weber, and Wood)
(Coauthors: Senators Blakespear, Glazer, Min, Newman, Wiener, and Wilk)

December 05, 2022

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An act to repeal and add Chapter 21 (commencing with Section 22500) of Division 8 of the Business and Professions Code, relating to sales.

LEGISLATIVE COUNSEL'S DIGEST

AB 8, as amended, Friedman. Ticket sellers.

Existing law provides comprehensive regulation of ticket sellers and makes violations of those provisions a misdemeanor. Existing law imposes various refund requirements on a ticket seller, including a requirement to issue a refund upon request to a ticket purchaser for canceled, postponed, or rescheduled events. Existing law also imposes various disclosure requirements on a ticket seller, including a requirement to disclose to a purchaser the location of the seat represented by the ticket, as specified.

This bill would revise and recast those provisions by expanding the definition of a ticket seller to include a primary contractor or platform, as defined, and would instead apply the refund requirement relating to the postponement or rescheduling of an event only to primary contractors. The bill would impose various disclosure requirements on ticket sellers relating to ticket price, including that the ticket seller would be required to display the total cost and fees for a ticket prior to the ticket being selected for purchase. prohibited from advertising, displaying, or offering a price for a ticket that does not include all fees or charges that must be paid in order to purchase the ticket other than taxes or fees imposed by a government on the transaction. The bill would prohibit the resale of tickets that were initially offered at no charge and that were knowingly obtained using software or services that circumvent controls or measures that ensure an equitable ticket buying process for event attendees, and would require a ticket seller to provide printed tickets for a cellular phone-free telephone-free event, as defined, at the same price that a mobile or electronic ticket is sold. The bill would impose various requirements on a primary contractor relating to the resale of tickets, including prohibiting a primary contractor from restricting the resale of tickets.

Existing law, the California Privacy Rights Act of 2020 (CPRA), approved by the voters as Proposition 24 at the November 3, 2020, statewide general election, amended, added to, and reenacted the California Consumer Privacy Act of 2018, imposing various obligations on businesses with respect to personal information, as defined. The CPRA requires a business to inform consumers of the categories of personal information to be collected and the purposes for which the categories of personal information are collected or used and whether that information is sold or shared.

This bill would prohibit a primary contractor from using personally identifiable information except to the extent necessary to facilitate a request to transfer a ticket from a purchaser to a resale buyer and to market a ticket seller’s products or services to a resale buyer, as specified.

The CPRA authorizes the Legislature to amend the act to further the purposes and intent of the act by a majority vote of both houses of the Legislature, as specified.

This bill would declare that its provisions further the purposes and intent of the CPRA.

By expanding the scope of existing provisions regulating ticket sellers and imposing new requirements on ticket sellers and primary contractors, the violation of which would be a crime, this bill would impose a state-mandated local program.

The California Constitution requires the state to reimburse local agencies and school districts for certain costs mandated by the state. Statutory provisions establish procedures for making that reimbursement.

This bill would provide that no reimbursement is required by this act for a specified reason.

Digest Key

Vote: MAJORITY   Appropriation: NO   Fiscal Committee: YES   Local Program: YES  

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Bill Text

The people of the State of California do enact as follows:

SECTION 1.

 Chapter 21 (commencing with Section 22500) of Division 8 of the Business and Professions Code is repealed.

SEC. 2.

 Chapter 21 (commencing with Section 22500) is added to Division 8 of the Business and Professions Code, to read:

CHAPTER  21. Ticket Sellers

22500.

 (a) For purposes of this chapter, the following definitions apply:

(1) “Cellular phone-free telephone-free event” means an event in which the organizer prohibits event attendees from retaining possession of their cellular phone telephone during the event by collecting and securing their cellular phone telephone or otherwise.

(2) “Platform operator” means a person or organization that is responsible for operating a marketplace that enables consumers to purchase, sell, and or resell tickets.

(3) “Primary contractor” means the person or organization that is responsible for the event for which tickets are being sold or an agent of that person or organization.

(4) “Ticket seller” means a person who, for compensation, commission, or otherwise, any other consideration or thing of value, sells or resells admission tickets to a sporting, musical, theatrical, or any other entertainment event, including a primary contractor or a platform operator.

(b) Except as provided in Sections 22505 and 22507, this chapter does not apply to any of the following:

(1) An officially appointed agent of an air carrier, ocean carrier, or motor coach carrier who purchases or sells tickets in conjunction with a tour package accomplished through the primary event promoter or their agent by written agreement.

(2) A person who sells six tickets or fewer to any one single event, provided the tickets are sold off the premises where the event is to take place, including, but not limited to, designated parking areas and points of entry to the event.

(3) A nonprofit charitable tax-exempt organization selling tickets to an event sponsored by the organization.

(c) This chapter does not prohibit a local agency from imposing any local fees or taxes.

22501.

 (a) It shall be unlawful for a ticket seller to contract for the sale of tickets or accept consideration for payment in full or for a deposit for the sale of tickets unless the ticket seller meets one or more of the following requirements:

(1) The ticket seller has the ticket in their possession.

(2) The ticket seller has a written contract to obtain the offered ticket at a certain price from a person in possession of the ticket or from a person who has a contractual right to obtain the ticket from the primary contractor.

(3) The ticket seller informs the purchaser orally at the time of the contract or receipt of consideration, whichever is earlier, and in writing within two business days, that the seller does not have possession of the ticket, has no contract to obtain the offered ticket at a certain price from a person in possession of the ticket or from a person who has a contractual right to obtain the ticket from the primary contractor, and may not be able to supply the ticket at the contracted price or range of prices.

(b) This section does not prohibit a ticket seller from accepting a deposit from a prospective purchaser as part of an agreement that the ticket seller will make best efforts to obtain a ticket at a specified price or price range and within a specified time, provided that the ticket seller informs the purchaser orally at the time of the contract or receipt of consideration, whichever is earlier, and in writing within two days, of the terms of the deposit agreement, and includes in the oral and written notice the disclosures otherwise required by this section.

22502.

 It shall be unlawful for a ticket seller to represent that they can deliver or cause to be delivered a ticket at a specific price or within a specific price range and to fail to deliver within a reasonable time or by a contracted time the ticket at or below the price stated or within the range of prices stated.

22503.

 (a) A ticket seller who is selling tickets to a cellular phone-free telephone-free event shall provide a printed ticket for sale.

(b) A ticket seller who is selling tickets to a cellular phone-free telephone-free event shall not charge more for a printed ticket, or impose a fee that is more than the fee for a mobile or electronic ticket.

22504.

 (a) A ticket seller shall, prior to sale, disclose to the purchaser by means of description or a map the location of the seat or seats represented by the ticket or tickets.

(b)A ticket seller shall disclose that a service charge is imposed by the ticket seller and is added to the actual ticket price by the seller in any advertisement or promotion for any event by the ticket seller.

(c)

(b) A ticket seller who includes tickets to an event in conjunction with the sale of a tour or event package, including, among other things, transportation, meals, lodging, or beverages, shall disclose in any advertisement or promotion the price charged or allotted for the tickets.

(d)

(c) A ticket seller shall disclose the total cost of a ticket, inclusive of all ancillary not advertise, display, or offer a ticket for sale without including all fees that must be paid in order to purchase the ticket, including, in a clear and conspicuous manner, the portion of the ticket price, stated in dollars, that represents a service charge, fee, or other surcharge. other than taxes imposed by a government on the transaction.

(1) Disclosure of a subtotal, fee, charge, or other component of the total price shall not be Any fees or charges included within the price of a ticket may be separately stated only if the disclosure is not false or misleading or made with an intent to deceive deceive, including, but not limited to, by bundling government taxes or fees with any component of the price, and shall not be presented more prominently or in the same or larger size as the total price. price of the ticket.

(2) The total amount due for the price of a ticket shall be displayed prior to the ticket being selected for purchase and shall not increase during the purchase process at any point after the ticket has been selected by the purchaser, except that the ticket seller may charge a fee for the delivery of the ticket that is reasonable to the delivery method selected by the purchaser and shall be disclosed to the purchaser prior to accepting payment. including, but not limited to, increasing the total amount due by adding mandatory fees or charges after ticket selection other than taxes or fees imposed by a government on the transaction.

(e)

(d) A ticket seller shall provide a link to an internet web page that includes the refund requirements for ticket sellers under Section 22509.

22505.

 (a) Notwithstanding subdivision (b) of Section 22500, it shall be unlawful for a person to intentionally use or sell software or services to circumvent a security measure, access control system, or other control or measure that is used to ensure an equitable ticket buying process for event attendees.

(b) Notwithstanding subdivision (b) of Section 22500, it shall be unlawful for any person to knowingly resell or offer to resell a ticket that the person knows was obtained using software or services that circumvent a security measure, access control system, or other control or measure that is used to ensure an equitable ticket buying process for event attendees, and that was not obtained for the person’s own use or the use of their invitees, employees, or agents.

(b)

(c) For purposes of this section:

(1) “Event attendee” means a person who purchases one or more tickets with the intent to attend the event for which the ticket or tickets are purchased. An event attendee does not include a ticket seller.

(2) A “control or measure that is used to ensure an equitable ticket buying process” includes limits on the number of tickets that a person can purchase.

22506.

(a)A primary contractor shall not do any of the following:

(1)Restrict by any means the resale of tickets, including tickets in a subscription or season ticket package.

(2)Deny access to a ticketholder who possesses a resold ticket to an event based solely on the grounds that the ticket was resold.

(3)(A)Except as provided in subparagraph (B), employ a paperless ticketing system unless the purchaser is given an option to purchase paperless tickets that the purchaser can transfer at any price, and at any time, and without additional fees, independent of the primary contractor.

(B)Notwithstanding subparagraph (A), a primary contractor may employ a paperless ticketing system that does not allow for independent transferability of a paperless ticket only if the purchaser is offered an option at the time of the initial sale to purchase the same ticket in some other form that is transferrable independent of the primary contractor, including, but not limited to, paper tickets or electronic tickets.

(4)Charge a different price for a ticket based on the form or transferability of the ticket.

(5)(A)Except as provided in subparagraph (B), use personally identifiable information obtained through a ticket transfer request for any purpose other than to facilitate that transfer.

(B)Notwithstanding subparagraph (A), the ticket seller may use personally identifiable information to market its products or services to the resale buyer if:

(i)A commercial relationship exists between the ticket seller and platform operator from which the resale buyer purchased the ticket; and

(ii)The resale buyer has consented to receiving marketing communications from the ticket seller.

(b)This section does not prevent a primary contractor from maintaining and enforcing any policies regarding conduct or behavior at or in connection with the venue. A primary contractor may revoke or restrict tickets for reasons relating to violation of venue policies, other than policies restricting or prohibiting ticket resale, including, but not limited to, attempts by two or more persons to gain admission to a single event with both the canceled tickets originally issued to the purchaser and those tickets reissued as part of a resale transaction and to the extent the primary contractor deems necessary for the protection of the physical safety of patrons or to address fraud or misconduct.

22507.

 Notwithstanding any other law, including subdivision (b) of Section 22500, it shall be unlawful to resell or offer to resell a ticket or other evidence of right of entry to any place of entertainment if the ticket was initially offered to the public at no charge and access to that ticket is not contingent upon providing a form of monetary consideration.

22508.

 Any partial or full deposit received by a ticket seller on a future event for which tickets are not available shall be refundable except for a service charge of not more than 10 percent until tickets for the event are actually available.

22509.

 (a) The ticket price of an event that is canceled shall be fully refunded to the purchaser by the ticket seller within 30 calendar days of the cancellation.

(b) The ticket price of an event that is postponed, rescheduled, or replaced with another event at the same date and time shall be fully refunded to the purchaser by the primary contractor upon request within 30 calendar days of the refund request.

(c) For purposes of this section, a rescheduled event includes a canceled occurrence of a recurring event for which the purchaser is offered the opportunity to attend another, materially identical occurrence of the same event at a different date or time.

(d) A local jurisdiction may require a ticket seller to provide a bond of not more than fifty thousand dollars ($50,000) to provide for any refunds that may be required by this section.

22510.

 A ticket seller shall maintain records of ticket sales, deposits, and refunds.

22511.

 (a) A ticket seller shall have a permanent business address from which tickets may only be sold and that address shall be included in any advertisement or solicitation, and shall be duly licensed as may be required by any local jurisdiction.

(b) A violation of this section shall constitute a misdemeanor punishable by imprisonment in a county jail not exceeding six months, or by fine not exceeding two thousand five hundred dollars ($2,500), or by both.

(c) A person who engages, has engaged, or proposes to engage in a violation of this section shall be liable for a civil penalty not to exceed two thousand five hundred dollars ($2,500) for each violation, which may be assessed and recovered in a civil action brought in the name of the people of the State of California by the Attorney General, or a district attorney, or a city attorney of a city having a population in excess of 750,000, and, with the consent of the district attorney, by a city prosecutor in any city, county, or city and county having a full-time prosecutor in any court of competent jurisdiction. Payment of the civil penalty shall be made pursuant to the provisions of subdivision (b) of Section 17206. For the purposes of this section, each ticket sold or offered for sale in violation of this section shall constitute a separate violation. The remedies provided by this section are cumulative to each other and to the remedies or penalties available under all other laws of this state.

22512.

 In addition to other remedies, a primary contractor ticket seller who violates Section 22501 or 22502 and fails to supply a ticket at or below a contracted price or within a contracted price range shall be civilly liable to the ticket purchaser for two times the contracted price of the ticket, in addition to any sum expended by the purchaser in nonrefundable expenses for attending or attempting to attend the event in good faith reliance on seat or space availability, and reasonable attorney’s fees and court costs.

22513.

 A violation of this chapter shall constitute a misdemeanor.

22514.

 The duties and obligations imposed by this title are cumulative with any other duties or obligations imposed under other law, and shall not be construed to relieve any party from any duties or obligations imposed under other law.

SEC. 3.

 No reimbursement is required by this act pursuant to Section 6 of Article XIII B of the California Constitution because the only costs that may be incurred by a local agency or school district will be incurred because this act creates a new crime or infraction, eliminates a crime or infraction, or changes the penalty for a crime or infraction, within the meaning of Section 17556 of the Government Code, or changes the definition of a crime within the meaning of Section 6 of Article XIII B of the California Constitution.

SEC. 4.

The Legislature finds and declares that Section 22506 of the Business and Professions Code, as added by Section 2 of this act, furthers the purposes and intent of the California Privacy Rights Act of 2020, enacted by Proposition 24 at the November 3, 2020, statewide election, within the meaning of Section 25 of Proposition 24.