Bill Text: MI SB0762 | 2017-2018 | 99th Legislature | Introduced
Bill Title: Crimes; other; resale of event tickets at higher or lower prices, and certain prohibitions for online ticket sales; provide for. Amends sec. 465 of 1931 PA 328 (MCL 750.465).
Spectrum: Partisan Bill (Republican 1-0)
Status: (Introduced - Dead) 2018-01-23 - Referred To Committee On Commerce [SB0762 Detail]
Download: Michigan-2017-SB0762-Introduced.html
SENATE BILL No. 762
January 23, 2018, Introduced by Senators PROOS, BRANDENBURG, CASPERSON, COLBECK, KOWALL, EMMONS, KNOLLENBERG, JONES and NOFS and referred to the Committee on Commerce.
A bill to amend 1931 PA 328, entitled
"The Michigan penal code,"
by amending section 465 (MCL 750.465).
THE PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF MICHIGAN ENACT:
Sec. 465. (1) The owner, lessee, operator, or manager of each
theatre, circus, athletic grounds used for an athletic game, or
place of public entertainment or amusement shall have printed on
each ticket issued for admission to, or for a seat of, the theatre,
circus, athletic grounds, or place of public entertainment or
amusement, in conspicuous type, the price of the ticket, and the
number
on the seat when each seat is if
the seats are numbered. The
owner, lessee, operator, or manager also shall print or endorse on
the ticket the charge in excess of the box office price at which
the ticket is sold if the ticket is purchased at a location other
than the box office where the event occurs and the following
statement: "This ticket may be purchased at the box office price
without the surcharge by purchasing the ticket at the box office
where the event is scheduled to occur.".
(2)
A person owning, occupying, managing, or controlling a
building,
room, park or enclosure for the sale of tickets for a
theatre,
circus, athletic game, or place of public entertainment or
amusement,
who asks, demands, or receives from a person for the
sale
of the ticket to a theatre, circus, athletic grounds, or place
of
public entertainment or amusement, a price in excess of the
general
admission advertised or charged for the same privilege, or
a
person, who by himself or herself or his or her agent or
employee,
offers for sale upon a public place or thoroughfare, a
ticket
to a theatre, circus, athletic grounds, or place of public
entertainment
or amusement, for admission to, or for a seat or
other
privilege in a theatre, circus, athletic grounds, or place of
public
entertainment or amusement, at a price in excess of that
demanded
or received from the general public for the same
privilege,
or in excess of the advertised or printed rate, shall be
punished
as provided in subsection (6), except if the request,
demand,
or receipt is with the written permission of the owner,
lessee,
operator, or manager of the theatre, circus, athletic
grounds,
or place of public entertainment or amusement where the
event
occurs. If the owner, lessee, operator, or manager permits,
in
writing, a charge in excess of the box office price, the
permission
shall be limited to the sales of tickets at locations
other
than the box office where the event occurs.
(3)
Except as provided in subsections (1) and (2), a person
shall
not establish an agency or suboffice for the sale of a seat
ticket
of admission to a theatre, circus, athletic grounds, or
place
of public entertainment or amusement at a price greater than
the
sale of a seat ticket at the box office of the theatre, circus,
athletic
grounds, place of public entertainment or amusement, or in
excess
of the advertised price of the seat ticket.
(4)
Except as provided in subsections (1) and (2), the owner,
lessee,
operator, or occupant of a building, room, enclosure, or
other
place open to the public, who permits a person to sell or
exhibit
for sale in the building, room, enclosure, or other place
open
to the public, 1 or more tickets for a theatre, circus,
athletic
grounds, or place of public entertainment or amusement,
for
more than the price printed on the ticket, shall be liable and
guilty
equally as the person.
(5)
If the owner, lessee, operator, or manager of a circus,
theatre,
athletic grounds, or place of public entertainment or
amusement
has sold a ticket or admission to a person, under
restrictive
conditions and at a less rate than the general
admission
charged, and whose name appears on the face of the ticket
or
is registered in the office of the owner, lessee, operator, or
managers
as the holder of the ticket and if it is printed on the
face
of the ticket that the ticket is nontransferable and sold only
to
the person whose name appears on the face of the ticket or is
registered,
the holder of the ticket shall not sell the ticket to
another
person, and a person selling the ticket shall be punished
as
provided in subsection (6).
(2) A person shall not knowingly sell, give, transfer, use,
distribute, or possess with the intent to distribute software that
is primarily designed or produced for the purpose of interfering
with the ticket sale operations of any owner, lessee, operator, or
manager of a circus, theater, athletic grounds, or place of public
entertainment or amusement over the internet by circumventing any
measures or controls on the seller's website that are instituted to
ensure an equitable sale process.
(3) Except as provided in subsection (4), a person owning,
operating, or controlling a ticket website for an event scheduled
at a venue in this state shall not use a subdomain or domain name
in the ticket website's URL that contains any of the following:
(a) All or part of the name of the venue.
(b) All or part of the name of the event, including the name
of a person or entity scheduled to perform or appear at the event.
(c) A name substantially similar to those described in
subdivision (a) or (b).
(4) Subsection (3) does not apply if the person owning,
operating, or controlling a ticket website for an event scheduled
in this state is acting on behalf of the venue.
(5) (6)
A person who that violates
this section is guilty of a
misdemeanor punishable by imprisonment for not more than 93 days or
a fine of not more than $500.00, or both.
(6) As used in this section:
(a) "Ticket website" means a website advertising the sale of
tickets, offering the sale of tickets, or facilitating a secondary
ticket exchange.
(b) "URL" means the uniform resource locator for a website on
the internet.
(c) "Venue" includes a sports venue, concert venue, theatrical
venue, club, convention center, fairgrounds, public assembly
facility, or mass gathering location.
Enacting section 1. This amendatory act takes effect 90 days
after the date it is enacted into law.