Public Act 099-0431
 
HB3103 EnrolledLRB099 10338 JLS 30565 b

    AN ACT concerning business.
 
    Be it enacted by the People of the State of Illinois,
represented in the General Assembly:
 
    Section 5. The Ticket Sale and Resale Act is amended by
changing Section 1.5 as follows:
 
    (815 ILCS 414/1.5)  (was 720 ILCS 375/1.5)
    Sec. 1.5. Sale of tickets at more than face value
prohibited; exceptions.
    (a) Except as otherwise provided in subsections (b), (c),
(d), and (e), and (f-5) of this Section and in Section 4, it is
unlawful for any person, persons, firm or corporation to sell
tickets for baseball games, football games, hockey games,
theatre entertainments, or any other amusement for a price more
than the price printed upon the face of said ticket, and the
price of said ticket shall correspond with the same price shown
at the box office or the office of original distribution.
    (b) This Act does not apply to the resale of tickets of
admission to a sporting event, theater, musical performance, or
place of public entertainment or amusement of any kind for a
price in excess of the printed box office ticket price by a
ticket broker who meets all of the following requirements:
        (1) The ticket broker is duly registered with the
    Office of the Secretary of State on a registration form
    provided by that Office. The registration must contain a
    certification that the ticket broker:
            (A) engages in the resale of tickets on a regular
        and ongoing basis from one or more permanent or fixed
        locations located within this State;
            (B) maintains as the principal business activity
        at those locations the resale of tickets;
            (C) displays at those locations the ticket
        broker's registration;
            (D) maintains at those locations a listing of the
        names and addresses of all persons employed by the
        ticket broker;
            (E) is in compliance with all applicable federal,
        State, and local laws relating to its ticket selling
        activities, and that neither the ticket broker nor any
        of its employees within the preceding 12 months have
        been convicted of a violation of this Act; and
            (F) meets the following requirements:
                (i) the ticket broker maintains a toll free
            number specifically dedicated for Illinois
            consumer complaints and inquiries concerning
            ticket sales;
                (ii) the ticket broker has adopted a code that
            advocates consumer protection that includes, at a
            minimum:
                    (a-1) consumer protection guidelines;
                    (b-1) a standard refund policy. In the
                event a refund is due, the ticket broker shall
                provide that refund without charge other than
                for reasonable delivery fees for the return of
                the tickets; and
                    (c-1) standards of professional conduct;
                (iii) the ticket broker has adopted a
            procedure for the binding resolution of consumer
            complaints by an independent, disinterested third
            party and thereby submits to the jurisdiction of
            the State of Illinois; and
                (iv) the ticket broker has established and
            maintains a consumer protection rebate fund in
            Illinois in an amount in excess of $100,000, which
            must be cash available for immediate disbursement
            for satisfaction of valid consumer complaints.
        Alternatively, the ticket broker may fulfill the
    requirements of subparagraph (F) of this paragraph (1) if
    the ticket broker certifies that he or she belongs to a
    professional association organized under the laws of this
    State, or organized under the laws of any other state and
    authorized to conduct business in Illinois, that has been
    in existence for at least 3 years prior to the date of that
    broker's registration with the Office of the Secretary of
    State, and is specifically dedicated, for and on behalf of
    its members, to provide and maintain the consumer
    protection requirements of subparagraph (F) of this
    paragraph (1) to maintain the integrity of the ticket
    brokerage industry.
        (2) (Blank).
        (3) The ticket broker and his employees must not engage
    in the practice of selling, or attempting to sell, tickets
    for any event while sitting or standing near the facility
    at which the event is to be held or is being held unless
    the ticket broker or his or her employees are on property
    they own, lease, or have permission to occupy.
        (4) The ticket broker must comply with all requirements
    of the Retailers' Occupation Tax Act and collect and remit
    all other applicable federal, State and local taxes in
    connection with the ticket broker's ticket selling
    activities.
        (5) Beginning January 1, 1996, no ticket broker shall
    advertise for resale any tickets within this State unless
    the advertisement contains the name of the ticket broker
    and the Illinois registration number issued by the Office
    of the Secretary of State under this Section.
        (6) Each ticket broker registered under this Act shall
    pay an annual registration fee of $100.
    (c) This Act does not apply to the sale of tickets of
admission to a sporting event, theater, musical performance, or
place of public entertainment or amusement of any kind for a
price in excess of the printed box office ticket price by a
reseller engaged in interstate or intrastate commerce on an
Internet auction listing service duly registered with the
Department of Financial and Professional Regulation under the
Auction License Act and with the Office of the Secretary of
State on a registration form provided by that Office. This
subsection (c) applies to both sales through an online bid
submission process and sales at a fixed price on the same
website or interactive computer service as an Internet auction
listing service registered with the Department of Financial and
Professional Regulation.
    This subsection (c) applies to resales described in this
subsection only if the operator of the Internet auction listing
service meets the following requirements:
        (1) the operator maintains a listing of the names and
    addresses of its corporate officers;
        (2) the operator is in compliance with all applicable
    federal, State, and local laws relating to ticket selling
    activities, and the operator's officers and directors have
    not been convicted of a violation of this Act within the
    preceding 12 months;
        (3) the operator maintains, either itself or through an
    affiliate, a toll free number dedicated for consumer
    complaints;
        (4) the operator provides consumer protections that
    include at a minimum:
            (A) consumer protection guidelines;
            (B) a standard refund policy that guarantees to all
        purchasers that it will provide and in fact provides a
        full refund of the amount paid by the purchaser
        (including, but not limited to, all fees, regardless of
        how characterized) if the following occurs:
                (i) the ticketed event is cancelled and the
            purchaser returns the tickets to the seller or
            Internet auction listing service; however,
            reasonable delivery fees need not be refunded if
            the previously disclosed guarantee specifies that
            the fees will not be refunded if the event is
            cancelled;
                (ii) the ticket received by the purchaser does
            not allow the purchaser to enter the ticketed event
            for reasons that may include, without limitation,
            that the ticket is counterfeit or that the ticket
            has been cancelled by the issuer due to
            non-payment, unless the ticket is cancelled due to
            an act or omission by such purchaser;
                (iii) the ticket fails to conform to its
            description on the Internet auction listing
            service; or
                (iv) the ticket seller willfully fails to send
            the ticket or tickets to the purchaser, or the
            ticket seller attempted to deliver the ticket or
            tickets to the purchaser in the manner required by
            the Internet auction listing service and the
            purchaser failed to receive the ticket or tickets;
            and
            (C) standards of professional conduct;
        (5) the operator has adopted an independent and
    disinterested dispute resolution procedure that allows
    resellers or purchasers to file complaints against the
    other and have those complaints mediated or resolved by a
    third party, and requires the resellers or purchasers to
    submit to the jurisdiction of the State of Illinois for
    complaints involving a ticketed event held in Illinois;
        (6) the operator either:
            (A) complies with all applicable requirements of
        the Retailers' Occupation Tax Act and collects and
        remits all applicable federal, State, and local taxes;
        or
            (B) publishes a written notice on the website after
        the sale of one or more tickets that automatically
        informs the ticket reseller of the ticket reseller's
        potential legal obligation to pay any applicable local
        amusement tax in connection with the reseller's sale of
        tickets, and discloses to law enforcement or other
        government tax officials, without subpoena, the name,
        city, state, telephone number, e-mail address, user ID
        history, fraud complaints, and bidding and listing
        history of any specifically identified reseller or
        purchaser upon the receipt of a verified request from
        law enforcement or other government tax officials
        relating to a criminal investigation or alleged
        illegal activity; and
        (7) the operator either:
            (A) has established and maintains a consumer
        protection rebate fund in Illinois in an amount in
        excess of $100,000, which must be cash available for
        immediate disbursement for satisfaction of valid
        consumer complaints; or
            (B) has obtained and maintains in force an errors
        and omissions insurance policy that provides at least
        $100,000 in coverage and proof that the policy has been
        filed with the Department of Financial and
        Professional Regulation.
    (d) This Act does not apply to the resale of tickets of
admission to a sporting event, theater, musical performance, or
place of public entertainment or amusement of any kind for a
price in excess of the printed box office ticket price
conducted at an auction solely by or for a not-for-profit
organization for charitable purposes under clause (a)(1) of
Section 10-1 of the Auction License Act.
    (e) This Act does not apply to the resale of a ticket for
admission to a baseball game, football game, hockey game,
theatre entertainment, or any other amusement for a price more
than the price printed on the face of the ticket and for more
than the price of the ticket at the box office if the resale is
made through an Internet website whose operator meets the
following requirements:
        (1) the operator has a business presence and physical
    street address in the State of Illinois and clearly and
    conspicuously posts that address on the website;
        (2) the operator maintains a listing of the names of
    the operator's directors and officers, and is duly
    registered with the Office of the Secretary of State on a
    registration form provided by that Office;
        (3) the operator is in compliance with all applicable
    federal, State, and local laws relating to its ticket
    reselling activities regulated under this Act, and the
    operator's officers and directors have not been convicted
    of a violation of this Act within the preceding 12 months;
        (4) the operator maintains a toll free number
    specifically dedicated for consumer complaints and
    inquiries regarding ticket resales made through the
    website;
        (5) the operator either:
            (A) has established and maintains a consumer
        protection rebate fund in Illinois in an amount in
        excess of $100,000, which must be cash available for
        immediate disbursement for satisfaction of valid
        consumer complaints; or
            (B) has obtained and maintains in force an errors
        and omissions policy of insurance in the minimum amount
        of $100,000 for the satisfaction of valid consumer
        complaints;
        (6) the operator has adopted an independent and
    disinterested dispute resolution procedure that allows
    resellers or purchasers to file complaints against the
    other and have those complaints mediated or resolved by a
    third party, and requires the resellers or purchasers to
    submit to the jurisdiction of the State of Illinois for
    complaints involving a ticketed event held in Illinois;
        (7) the operator either:
            (A) complies with all applicable requirements of
        the Retailers' Occupation Tax Act and collects and
        remits all applicable federal, State, and local taxes;
        or
            (B) publishes a written notice on the website after
        the sale of one or more tickets that automatically
        informs the ticket reseller of the ticket reseller's
        potential legal obligation to pay any applicable local
        amusement tax in connection with the reseller's sale of
        tickets, and discloses to law enforcement or other
        government tax officials, without subpoena, the name,
        city, state, telephone number, e-mail address, user ID
        history, fraud complaints, and bidding and listing
        history of any specifically identified reseller or
        purchaser upon the receipt of a verified request from
        law enforcement or other government tax officials
        relating to a criminal investigation or alleged
        illegal activity; and
        (8) the operator guarantees to all purchasers that it
    will provide and in fact provides a full refund of the
    amount paid by the purchaser (including, but not limited
    to, all fees, regardless of how characterized) if any of
    the following occurs:
            (A) the ticketed event is cancelled and the
        purchaser returns the tickets to the website operator;
        however, reasonable delivery fees need not be refunded
        if the previously disclosed guarantee specifies that
        the fees will not be refunded if the event is
        cancelled;
            (B) the ticket received by the purchaser does not
        allow the purchaser to enter the ticketed event for
        reasons that may include, without limitation, that the
        ticket is counterfeit or that the ticket has been
        cancelled by the issuer due to non-payment, unless the
        ticket is cancelled due to an act or omission by the
        purchaser;
            (C) the ticket fails to conform to its description
        on the website; or
            (D) the ticket seller willfully fails to send the
        ticket or tickets to the purchaser, or the ticket
        seller attempted to deliver the ticket or tickets to
        the purchaser in the manner required by the website
        operator and the purchaser failed to receive the ticket
        or tickets.
    Nothing in this subsection (e) shall be deemed to imply any
limitation on ticket sales made in accordance with subsections
(b), (c), and (d) of this Section or any limitation on sales
made in accordance with Section 4.
    (f) The provisions of subsections (b), (c), (d), and (e) of
this Section apply only to the resale of a ticket after the
initial sale of that ticket. No reseller of a ticket may refuse
to sell tickets to another ticket reseller solely on the basis
that the purchaser is a ticket reseller or ticket broker
authorized to resell tickets pursuant to this Act.
    (f-5) In addition to the requirements imposed under
subsections (b), (c), (d), (e), and (f) of this Section, ticket
brokers and resellers must comply with the requirements of this
subsection. Before accepting any payment from a purchaser, a
ticket broker or reseller must disclose to the purchaser in a
clear, conspicuous, and readily noticeable manner the
following information:
        (1) the registered name and city of the event venue;
        (2) that the ticket broker or reseller is not the event
    venue box office or its licensed ticket agent, but is,
    instead, a ticket broker or reseller and that lost or
    stolen tickets may be reissued only by ticket brokers or
    resellers;
        (3) whether it is registered under this Act; and
        (4) its refund policy, name, and contact information.
    Before selling and accepting payment for a ticket, a ticket
broker or reseller must require the purchaser to acknowledge by
an affirmative act the disclosures required under this
subsection. The disclosures required by this subsection must be
made in a clear and conspicuous manner, appear together, and be
preceded by the heading "IMPORTANT NOTICE" which must be in
bold face font that is larger than the font size of the
required disclosures.
    Ticket brokers and resellers must guarantee a full refund
of the amount paid by the purchaser, including handling and
delivery fees, if any of the following occurs:
        (1) the ticket received by the purchaser does not grant
    the purchaser admission to the event described on the
    ticket, unless it is due to an act or omission by the
    purchaser;
        (2) the ticket fails to conform substantially to its
    description as advertised; or
        (3) the event for which the ticket has been resold is
    cancelled and not rescheduled.
    This subsection (f-5) does not apply to an Internet auction
listing service registered with the Department of Financial and
Professional Regulation as required under the Auction License
Act.
    (g) The provisions of Public Act 89-406 are severable under
Section 1.31 of the Statute on Statutes.
    (h) The provisions of this amendatory Act of the 94th
General Assembly are severable under Section 1.31 of the
Statute on Statutes.
(Source: P.A. 94-20, eff. 6-14-05.)