Rep. Angelo Saviano

Filed: 04/12/05

 

 


 

 


 
09400HB0873ham002 LRB094 04214 RLC 44762 a

1
AMENDMENT TO HOUSE BILL 873

2     AMENDMENT NO. ______. Amend House Bill 873, AS AMENDED, by
3 replacing everything after the enacting clause with the
4 following:
 
5     "Section 5. The Ticket Scalping Act is amended by changing
6 Sections 0.01, 1, and 1.5 as follows:
 
7     (720 ILCS 375/0.01)  (from Ch. 121 1/2, par. 157.30)
8     Sec. 0.01. Short title. This Act may be cited as the Ticket
9 Sale and Resale Scalping Act.
10 (Source: P.A. 86-1324.)
 
11     (720 ILCS 375/1)  (from Ch. 121 1/2, par. 157.31)
12     Sec. 1. Sale of tickets other than at box office
13 prohibited; exceptions.
14     (a) It is unlawful for any person, firm or corporation,
15 owner, lessee, manager, trustee, or any of their employees or
16 agents, owning, conducting, managing or operating any theater,
17 circus, baseball park, place of public entertainment or
18 amusement where tickets of admission are sold for any such
19 places of amusement or public entertainment to sell or permit
20 the sale, barter or exchange of such admission tickets at any
21 other place than in the box office or on the premises of such
22 theater, circus, baseball park, place of public entertainment
23 or amusement, but nothing herein prevents such theater, circus,

 

 

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1 baseball park, place of public entertainment or amusement from
2 placing any of its admission tickets for sale at any other
3 place at the same price such admission tickets are sold by such
4 theater, circus, baseball park or other place of public
5 entertainment or amusement at its box office or on the premises
6 of such places, at the same advertised price or printed rate
7 thereof.
8     (b) Any term or condition of the original sale of a ticket
9 to any theater, circus, baseball park, or place of public
10 entertainment or amusement where tickets of admission are sold
11 that purports to limit the terms or conditions of resale of the
12 ticket (including but not limited to the resale price of the
13 ticket) is unenforceable, null, and void if the resale
14 transaction is carried out by any of the means set forth in
15 subsections (b), (c), (d), and (e) of Section 1.5 of this Act.
16 This subsection shall not apply to a term or condition of the
17 original sale of a ticket to any theater, circus, baseball
18 park, or place of public entertainment or amusement where
19 tickets of admission are sold that purports to limit the terms
20 or conditions of resale of a ticket specifically designated as
21 seating in a special section for a person with a physical
22 disability.
23 (Source: Laws 1923, p. 322.)
 
24     (720 ILCS 375/1.5)  (from Ch. 121 1/2, par. 157.32)
25     Sec. 1.5. Sale of tickets at more than face value
26 prohibited; exceptions.
27     (a) Except as otherwise provided in subsections (b), (c),
28 (d), and (e) subsection (b) of this Section and in Section 4,
29 it is unlawful for any person, persons, firm or corporation to
30 sell tickets for baseball games, football games, hockey games,
31 theatre entertainments, or any other amusement for a price more
32 than the price printed upon the face of said ticket, and the
33 price of said ticket shall correspond with the same price shown

 

 

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1 at the box office or the office of original distribution.
2     (b) This Act does not apply to the resale sale of tickets
3 of admission to a sporting event, theater, musical performance,
4 or place of public entertainment or amusement of any kind for a
5 price in excess of the printed box office ticket price by a
6 ticket broker who meets all of the following requirements:
7         (1) The ticket broker is duly registered with the
8     Office of the Secretary of State on a registration form
9     provided by that Office. The registration must contain a
10     certification that the ticket broker:
11             (A) engages in the resale of tickets on a regular
12         and ongoing basis from one or more permanent or fixed
13         locations located within this State;
14             (B) maintains as the principal business activity
15         at those locations the resale of tickets;
16             (C) displays at those locations the ticket
17         broker's registration;
18             (D) maintains at those locations a listing of the
19         names and addresses of all persons employed by the
20         ticket broker;
21             (E) is in compliance with all applicable federal,
22         State, and local laws relating to its ticket selling
23         activities, and that neither the ticket broker nor any
24         of its employees within the preceding 12 months have
25         been convicted of a violation of this Act; and
26             (F) that the ticket broker meets the following
27         requirements:
28                 (i) the ticket broker maintains a statewide
29             toll free number specifically dedicated for
30             Illinois for consumer complaints and inquiries
31             concerning ticket sales;
32                 (ii) the ticket broker has adopted a code that
33             advocates consumer protection that includes, at a
34             minimum:

 

 

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1                     (a-1) consumer protection guidelines;
2                     (b-1) a standard refund policy. In the
3                 event a refund is due, the ticket broker shall
4                 provide that refund without charge other than
5                 for reasonable delivery fees for the return of
6                 the tickets; and
7                     (c-1) standards of professional conduct;
8                 (iii) the ticket broker has adopted a
9             procedure for the binding resolution of consumer
10             complaints by an independent, disinterested third
11             party and thereby submits to the jurisdiction of
12             the State of Illinois; and
13                 (iv) the ticket broker has established and
14             maintains a consumer protection rebate fund in
15             Illinois in an amount in excess of $100,000, at
16             least 50% of which must be cash available for
17             immediate disbursement for satisfaction of valid
18             consumer complaints.
19         Alternatively, the ticket broker may fulfill the
20     requirements of subparagraph (F) of this paragraph (1)
21     subsection (b) if the ticket broker certifies that he or
22     she belongs to a professional association organized under
23     the laws of this State, or organized under the laws of any
24     other state and authorized to conduct business in Illinois,
25     that has been in existence for at least 3 years prior to
26     the date of that broker's registration with the Office of
27     the Secretary of State, and is specifically dedicated, for
28     and on behalf of its members, to provide and maintain the
29     consumer protection requirements of subparagraph (F) of
30     this paragraph (1) subsection (b) to maintain the integrity
31     of the ticket brokerage industry.
32         (2) (Blank).
33         (3) The ticket broker and his employees must not engage
34     in the practice of selling, or attempting to sell, tickets

 

 

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1     for any event while sitting or standing near the facility
2     at which the event is to be held or is being held unless
3     the ticket broker or his or her employees are on property
4     they own, lease, or have permission to occupy.
5         (4) The ticket broker must comply with all requirements
6     of the Retailers' Occupation Tax Act and collect and remit
7     all other applicable federal, State and local taxes laws in
8     connection with the ticket broker's his ticket selling
9     activities.
10         (5) Beginning January 1, 1996, no ticket broker shall
11     advertise for resale any tickets within this State unless
12     the advertisement contains the name of the ticket broker
13     and the Illinois registration number issued by the Office
14     of the Secretary of State under this Section.
15         (6) Each ticket broker registered under this Act shall
16     pay an annual registration fee of $100.
17     (c) This Act does not apply to the sale of tickets of
18 admission to a sporting event, theater, musical performance, or
19 place of public entertainment or amusement of any kind for a
20 price in excess of the printed box office ticket price by a
21 reseller engaged in interstate or intrastate commerce on an
22 Internet auction listing service duly registered with the
23 Department of Financial and Professional Regulation under the
24 Auction License Act and with the Office of the Secretary of
25 State on a registration form provided by that Office. This
26 subsection (c) applies to both sales through an online bid
27 submission process and sales at a fixed price on the same
28 website or interactive computer service as an Internet auction
29 listing service registered with the Department of Financial and
30 Professional Regulation.
31     This subsection (c) applies to resales described in this
32 subsection only if the operator of the Internet auction listing
33 service meets the following requirements:
34         (1) the operator maintains a listing of the names and

 

 

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1     addresses of its corporate officers;
2         (2) the operator is in compliance with all applicable
3     federal, State, and local laws relating to ticket selling
4     activities, and the operator's officers and directors have
5     not been convicted of a violation of this Act within the
6     preceding 12 months;
7         (3) the operator maintains, either itself or through an
8     affiliate, a toll free number dedicated for consumer
9     complaints;
10         (4) the operator provides consumer protections that
11     include at a minimum:
12             (A) consumer protection guidelines;
13             (B) a standard refund policy that guarantees to all
14         purchasers that it will provide and in fact provides a
15         full refund of the amount paid by the purchaser
16         (including, but not limited to, all fees, regardless of
17         how characterized) if the following occurs:
18                 (i) the ticketed event is cancelled and the
19             purchaser returns the tickets to the seller or
20             Internet auction listing service; however,
21             reasonable delivery fees need not be refunded if
22             the previously disclosed guarantee specifies that
23             the fees will not be refunded if the event is
24             cancelled;
25                 (ii) the ticket received by the purchaser does
26             not allow the purchaser to enter the ticketed event
27             for reasons that may include, without limitation,
28             that the ticket is counterfeit or that the ticket
29             has been cancelled by the issuer due to
30             non-payment, unless the ticket is cancelled due to
31             an act or omission by such purchaser;
32                 (iii) the ticket fails to conform to its
33             description on the Internet auction listing
34             service; or

 

 

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1                 (iv) the ticket seller willfully fails to send
2             the ticket or tickets to the purchaser, or the
3             ticket seller attempted to deliver the ticket or
4             tickets to the purchaser in the manner required by
5             the Internet auction listing service and the
6             purchaser failed to receive the ticket or tickets;
7             and
8             (C) standards of professional conduct;
9         (5) the operator has adopted an independent and
10     disinterested dispute resolution procedure that allows
11     resellers or purchasers to file complaints against the
12     other and have those complaints mediated or resolved by a
13     third party, and requires the resellers or purchasers to
14     submit to the jurisdiction of the State of Illinois for
15     complaints involving a ticketed event held in Illinois;
16         (6) the operator either:
17             (A) complies with all applicable requirements of
18         the Retailers' Occupation Tax Act and collects and
19         remits all applicable federal, State, and local taxes;
20         or
21             (B) publishes a written notice on the website after
22         the sale of one or more tickets that automatically
23         informs the ticket reseller of the ticket reseller's
24         potential legal obligation to pay any applicable local
25         amusement tax in connection with the reseller's sale of
26         tickets, and discloses to law enforcement or other
27         government tax officials, without subpoena, the name,
28         city, state, telephone number, e-mail address, user ID
29         history, fraud complaints, and bidding and listing
30         history of any specifically identified reseller or
31         purchaser upon the receipt of a verified request from
32         law enforcement or other government tax officials
33         relating to a criminal investigation or alleged
34         illegal activity; and

 

 

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1         (7) the operator either:
2             (A) has established and maintains a consumer
3         protection rebate fund in Illinois in an amount in
4         excess of $100,000, which must be cash available for
5         immediate disbursement for satisfaction of valid
6         consumer complaints; or
7             (B) has obtained and maintains in force an errors
8         and omissions insurance policy that provides at least
9         $100,000 in coverage and proof that the policy has been
10         filed with the Department of Financial and
11         Professional Regulation.
12     (d) This Act does not apply to the resale of tickets of
13 admission to a sporting event, theater, musical performance, or
14 place of public entertainment or amusement of any kind for a
15 price in excess of the printed box office ticket price
16 conducted at an auction solely by or for a not-for-profit
17 organization for charitable purposes under clause (a)(1) of
18 Section 10-1 of the Auction License Act.
19     (e) This Act does not apply to the resale of a ticket for
20 admission to a baseball game, football game, hockey game,
21 theatre entertainment, or any other amusement for a price more
22 than the price printed on the face of the ticket and for more
23 than the price of the ticket at the box office if the resale is
24 made through an Internet website whose operator meets the
25 following requirements:
26         (1) the operator has a business presence and physical
27     street address in the State of Illinois and clearly and
28     conspicuously posts that address on the website;
29         (2) the operator maintains a listing of the names of
30     the operator's directors and officers, and is duly
31     registered with the Office of the Secretary of State on a
32     registration form provided by that Office;
33         (3) the operator is in compliance with all applicable
34     federal, State, and local laws relating to its ticket

 

 

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1     reselling activities regulated under this Act, and the
2     operator's officers and directors have not been convicted
3     of a violation of this Act within the preceding 12 months;
4         (4) the operator maintains a toll free number
5     specifically dedicated for consumer complaints and
6     inquiries regarding ticket resales made through the
7     website;
8         (5) the operator either:
9             (A) has established and maintains a consumer
10         protection rebate fund in Illinois in an amount in
11         excess of $100,000, which must be cash available for
12         immediate disbursement for satisfaction of valid
13         consumer complaints; or
14             (B) has obtained and maintains in force an errors
15         and omissions policy of insurance in the minimum amount
16         of $100,000 for the satisfaction of valid consumer
17         complaints;
18         (6) the operator has adopted an independent and
19     disinterested dispute resolution procedure that allows
20     resellers or purchasers to file complaints against the
21     other and have those complaints mediated or resolved by a
22     third party, and requires the resellers or purchasers to
23     submit to the jurisdiction of the State of Illinois for
24     complaints involving a ticketed event held in Illinois;
25         (7) the operator either:
26             (A) complies with all applicable requirements of
27         the Retailers' Occupation Tax Act and collects and
28         remits all applicable federal, State, and local taxes;
29         or
30             (B) publishes a written notice on the website after
31         the sale of one or more tickets that automatically
32         informs the ticket reseller of the ticket reseller's
33         potential legal obligation to pay any applicable local
34         amusement tax in connection with the reseller's sale of

 

 

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1         tickets, and discloses to law enforcement or other
2         government tax officials, without subpoena, the name,
3         city, state, telephone number, e-mail address, user ID
4         history, fraud complaints, and bidding and listing
5         history of any specifically identified reseller or
6         purchaser upon the receipt of a verified request from
7         law enforcement or other government tax officials
8         relating to a criminal investigation or alleged
9         illegal activity; and
10         (8) the operator guarantees to all purchasers that it
11     will provide and in fact provides a full refund of the
12     amount paid by the purchaser (including, but not limited
13     to, all fees, regardless of how characterized) if any of
14     the following occurs:
15             (A) the ticketed event is cancelled and the
16         purchaser returns the tickets to the website operator;
17         however, reasonable delivery fees need not be refunded
18         if the previously disclosed guarantee specifies that
19         the fees will not be refunded if the event is
20         cancelled;
21             (B) the ticket received by the purchaser does not
22         allow the purchaser to enter the ticketed event for
23         reasons that may include, without limitation, that the
24         ticket is counterfeit or that the ticket has been
25         cancelled by the issuer due to non-payment, unless the
26         ticket is cancelled due to an act or omission by the
27         purchaser;
28             (C) the ticket fails to conform to its description
29         on the website; or
30             (D) the ticket seller willfully fails to send the
31         ticket or tickets to the purchaser, or the ticket
32         seller attempted to deliver the ticket or tickets to
33         the purchaser in the manner required by the website
34         operator and the purchaser failed to receive the ticket

 

 

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1         or tickets.
2     Nothing in this subsection (e) shall be deemed to imply any
3 limitation on ticket sales made in accordance with subsections
4 (b), (c), and (d) of this Section or any limitation on sales
5 made in accordance with Section 4.
6     (f) The provisions of subsections (b), (c), (d), and (e) of
7 this Section apply only to the resale of a ticket after the
8 initial sale of that ticket. No reseller of a ticket may refuse
9 to sell tickets to another ticket reseller solely on the basis
10 that the purchaser is a ticket reseller or ticket broker
11 authorized to resell tickets pursuant to this Act.
12     (g) The provisions of Public Act 89-406 this amendatory Act
13 of 1995 are severable under Section 1.31 of the Statute on
14 Statutes.
15     (h) The provisions of this amendatory Act of the 94th
16 General Assembly are severable under Section 1.31 of the
17 Statute on Statutes.
18 (Source: P.A. 89-406, eff. 11-15-95.)
 
19     Section 99. Effective date. This Act takes effect upon
20 becoming law.".