Music Industry Urges Senate to Strengthen Ticketing Reform Bill

Photo Credit: Ian Hutchinson

A national alliance of independent music and live entertainment industry figures sent a letter to the Senate urging improvements to the TICKET Act.

The Fix the Tix Coalition, a national alliance of music and live event organizations led by the National Independent Venue Association (NIVA), sent a letter to leaders of the Senate Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation urging critical improvements to the House TICKET Act (S.281).

The letter was addressed to Chairman Ted Cruz, Ranking Member Maria Cantwell, Subcommittee Chairman Marsha Blackburn, Ranking Member John Hickenlooper, and the Members of the Senate Commerce Committee.

The coalition’s recommendations come a month after the January 28 hearing before the Senate Commerce Subcommittee on Consumer Protection, Technology, and Data Privacy examining the TICKET Act and the state of the live event ticketing marketplace.

During that hearing, senators from both parties, artists, venues, and ticketing platform representatives acknowledged that deceptive practices—including speculative ticketing, price gouging, and hidden fees—are eroding trust in the live entertainment industry and harming fans nationwide. Further, multiple industry voices expressed issues with the TICKET Act as currently written.

“Congress should ban resale above the original total cost of the ticket and cap all resale fees at no more than 10%,” the coalition writes. “Across the country, fans are being priced out of live events not because artists or venues raised prices, but because resale markets allow unlimited markups and excessive fees divorced from any added value or risk.”

In its letter, Fix the Tix calls on Congress to strengthen the TICKET Act in three key ways:

Require full, end-to-end price transparency

The Coalition urges Congress to require clear and conspicuous disclosure of the base ticket price and each fee from the moment a ticket is first selected through the completion of the transaction. The letter notes that disclosure at the final checkout page is insufficient and fails to provide fans with meaningful, upfront pricing information.

Fully ban “speculative” ticketing without exception

The coalition calls for a complete prohibition on the sale or advertisement of tickets that the reseller does not have in their actual or constructive possession. So-called “concierge” or “seat saver” schemes, the letter explains, are not legitimate services but deceptive practices that can leave fans holding invalid or nonexistent tickets.

Cap resale prices and fees

Fix the Tix urges Congress to prohibit resale above the original total cost of concert tickets and to cap resale fees at no more than 10% of the original total price. The coalition argues that unlimited resale markups fuel speculative purchasing and industrialized scalping, pricing real fans out of live events while diverting revenue away from artists, venues, and local communities.

“When federal policy falls short, fans pay the price,” the coalition writes. “They lose money, incur unnecessary travel costs, and often blame the artist or venue for problems caused by deceptive resale practices. Meanwhile, speculative sellers assume little risk and face few meaningful consequences.”

The coalition emphasized that while the TICKET Act represents progress, without a complete ban on speculative ticketing, enforceable limits on resale pricing and fees, and robust price transparency throughout the purchasing process, bad actors will continue to exploit gaps in federal law.

The Fix the Tix Coalition is a broad alliance of live event organizations advocating for a fairer ticketing system. Signatories to today’s letter include:

• NIVA
• American Association of Independent Music (A2IM)
• American Federation of Musicians
• Americans for the Arts
• Association of Performing Arts Professionals (APAP)
• Black Music Action Coalition
• Colorado Independent Venue Association (CIVA)
• Eventbrite
• Fan Alliance
• Folk Alliance International
• Future of Music Coalition
• Music Artists Coalition
• Music Managers Forum-US (MMF-US)
• Music Venue Alliance Nashville (MVAN)
• National Independent Talent Organization (NITO)
• National Performance Network
• OPERA America
• Recording Academy
• SAG-AFTRA
• Songwriters of North America (SONA)
• SoundExchange
• Washington Nightlife & Music Association (WANMA)

The coalition reiterated its readiness to work with the Senate Commerce Committee to ensure that final legislation delivers clear, enforceable protections that restore trust in the live event marketplace and reflect the bipartisan intent expressed during the January hearing.