Noah Kahn, Gov. Healey Join Forces To Stick It To Ticket Resellers This Season

Gov. Maura Healey enlisted the help of smash singer-songwriter Noah Kahn to announce a bill that would restrict the resale price of concert and event tickets, while capping fees and ending the practice of speculative sales where vendors sell tickets before they have secured them.

"An Act Relative to Closing the Great Divide between Ticket Prices and Affordability" or "The Great Divide Act" — in reference to the Kahn song — is designed to lower sports and concert ticket prices and "ensure that fans have a fair opportunity to enjoy the events they love without paying exorbitant prices on the secondary market."

• 30+ MA Beaches Closed As Smoky Haze Makes Comeback

Kahn, who is from Watertown, recently became the first artist in history to perform four straight sold-out shows at Fenway Park. He has been a vocal opponent of predatory resale practices and successfully advocated for a similar bill in Vermont.

Healey said the legislation would establish some of the nation's strongest consumer protections for the secondary ticket market by capping resale prices at 110 percent of face value, capping fees at 10 percent of ticket value and prohibiting speculative sales.

• House Passes Bill Making Daylight Saving Time Permanent: How MA's Reps Voted

Healey's proposal will be included in her upcoming closeout supplemental budget.

"Far too many Massachusetts residents have experienced the pain of being excited to buy tickets to see their favorite singer or sports team, only to realize that resale prices and fees have driven up the cost to outrageous levels," Healey said. "Or how about when you do purchase tickets from a reseller, only to get to the venue to realize the seller never actually transfers them to you? Enough is enough.

"We are taking action to lower ticket resale prices so Massachusetts fans can better afford to see their favorite performer or team."

Kahan joined Healey virtually during her news conference on Thursday to announce the bill.

"I heard about what you're announcing today and I just wanted to let you know how excited I am about it," the "Stick Season" singer said. "The artist community and fans will greatly benefit from limiting ticket scalping and the sales of speculative tickets. I love my fans and want to protect them however I can. Artists alone could not tackle the market manipulation of secondary resellers.

"So, thank you so much for making this a priority in Massachusetts."

The resale price cap would apply to all tickets unless the artist or venue explicitly authorizes a higher resale cap through a written agreement.

Under the bill, a concert or sports event ticket with a face value of $100 could not be resold for more than $110.

A ticket sold for $100 also could not have fees of more than $10 — which Healey said would cut most fees by roughly half.

Speculative tickets involve resellers who sell tickets based on those they expect to obtain. During this summer's World Cup matches at Gillette Stadium, some fans who purchased tickets through online resale platforms were turned away after discovering the tickets they bought never existed.

The bill includes additional consumer protections to prohibit deceptive resale websites that falsely suggest they are affiliated with artists or venues and to prevent resellers from misleading consumers about ticket availability or scarcity.