California bill to cap concert ticket resale prices dies in Senate committee

California's push to cap concert ticket resale prices at 10 percent above face value has failed for this legislative session. The California Senate Appropriations Committee held AB 1720 on its suspense file on August 13, Music Business Worldwide reported, one day before the deadline for the state's fiscal committees to move bills forward. A companion measure, AB 1349, cleared the same hearing and can still go to a Senate vote.

AB 1720, known as the California Fans First Act, was introduced in February by San Francisco Assemblymember Matt Haney. It would have capped concert and live event ticket resale at 10 percent above face value, including fees, and limited what resale marketplaces could charge. An amendment in May narrowed its reach to independent venues holding 3,000 or fewer people, plus certain nonprofit venues, exempting professional sports.

The bill drew opposition over its projected enforcement cost, estimated by the California Department of Justice at around $1.6 million in its first year. It also faced heavy lobbying from resale platforms: Rolling Stone reports StubHub spent close to $3.4 million on California lobbying this year, making the April-to-June quarter its heaviest lobbying period on record in the state. "This isn't a fringe idea, and it isn't partisan," Haney said, noting artists across genres, from Kid Rock to Noah Kahan, have called for resale reform.

AB 1720 cannot carry over, so Haney would need to reintroduce it when the legislature reconvenes in December.

Resale price caps have already passed in Maine, Vermont and Washington, D.C., and Massachusetts moved in July to add a 110 percent ceiling to its own spending bill. The surviving companion bill, AB 1349, targets bot-driven scalping and deceptive ticketing sites and must clear the Senate floor before an August 31 deadline.