HOLDBACKS Act

Key Points

• Ticket sellers would have to publicly post the total number of tickets available for a show or game, and the full ticket price, at least 7 days before tickets go on sale.
• Sellers are banned from secretly holding back tickets just to make a show look more sold out than it is, a tactic that can be used to drive up prices.
• The bill requires the full 'total cost' of a ticket, including all fees and taxes, to be disclosed as part of the pricing requirement, aiming to prevent surprise fees at checkout.
• The Federal Trade Commission would enforce these rules as violations of federal consumer protection law, and state attorneys general keep their own authority to sue sellers who mislead the public.
• Sporting events with an unknown number of games, like a playoff series that ends once a team wins enough games, are exempted from the advance disclosure requirement.