S 4418: Prohibits ticket sales that exceed the capacity of a place of entertainment or not-for-profit venue; provides that a violation of such provisions constitutes a misdemeanor punishable by a fine and imprisonment for a period not to exceed one year.

  
  STATE OF NEW YORK ________________________________________________________________________ 4418 2025-2026 Regular Sessions  IN SENATE February 4, 2025 ___________ Introduced by Sen. MAY -- read twice and ordered printed, and when printed to be committed to the Committee on Cultural Affairs, Tourism, Parks and Recreation AN ACT to amend the arts and cultural affairs law, in relation to prohibiting ticket sales that exceed the capacity of a place of enter- tainment, and requiring original sellers of tickets to be licensed by the secretary of state The People of the State of New York, represented in Senate and Assem- bly, do enact as follows: 1 Section 1. Section 25.03 of the arts and cultural affairs law is 2 amended by adding a new subdivision 11 to read as follows: 3 11. "Sale" means any sale of a ticket for entrance to a place of 4 entertainment located within the boundaries of the state of New York by 5 an operator or such operator's agent who is expressly authorized to make 6 first sales of such tickets. The term "sale" shall include sales by any 7 means, including in person, or by means of telephone, mail, delivery 8 service, facsimile, internet, email or other electronic means, where the 9 venue for which the ticket grants admission is located in New York 10 state. The term "sale" shall not apply to any governmental or not-for- 11 profit organization, or person acting on behalf of such governmental or 12 not-for-profit organization, as long as any profit realized from ticket 13 selling is wholly dedicated to the purposes of such governmental or 14 not-for-profit organization. 15 § 2. The section heading of section 25.10 of the arts and cultural 16 affairs law, as added by chapter 110 of the laws of 2018, is amended and 17 a new subdivision 5 is added to read as follows: 18 Ticket sale and resale requirements. 19 5. No operator or other ticket seller or reseller shall sell tickets 20 to any place of entertainment in an amount that would exceed the capaci- 21 ty of such place of entertainment. EXPLANATION--Matter in italics (underscored) is new; matter in brackets [ ] is old law to be omitted. LBD08698-01-5 
 S. 4418 2 1 § 3. The section heading and subdivision 1 of section 25.13 of the 2 arts and cultural affairs law, the section heading as amended by chapter 3 61 and subdivision 1 as amended by chapter 374 of the laws of 2007, are 4 amended to read as follows: 5 Licensing of ticket sellers and resellers. 1. No person, firm or 6 corporation shall sell or resell, or engage in the business of selling 7 or reselling any tickets to a place of entertainment or operate an 8 internet website or any other electronic service that provides a mech- 9 anism for two or more parties to participate in a sale or resale trans- 10 action or that facilitates sale or resale transactions by the means of 11 an auction, or own, conduct or maintain any office, branch office, 12 bureau, agency or sub-agency for such business without having first 13 procured a license or certificate for each location at which business 14 will be conducted from the secretary of state. Any operator or manager 15 of a website that serves as a platform to facilitate resale, or resale 16 by way of a competitive bidding process, solely between third parties 17 and does not in any other manner engage in resales of tickets to places 18 of entertainment shall be exempt from the licensing requirements of this 19 section. The department of state shall issue and deliver to such appli- 20 cant a certificate or license to conduct such business and to own, 21 conduct or maintain a bureau, agency, sub-agency, office or branch 22 office for the conduct of such business on the premises stated in such 23 application upon the payment by or on behalf of the applicant of a fee 24 of five thousand dollars and shall be renewed upon the payment of a like 25 fee annually. Such license or certificate shall not be transferred or 26 assigned, except by permission of the secretary of state. Such license 27 or certificate shall run to the first day of January next ensuing the 28 date thereof, unless sooner revoked by the secretary of state. Such 29 license or certificate shall be granted upon a written application 30 setting forth such information as the secretary of state may require in 31 order to enable [him or her] the secretary of state to carry into effect 32 the provisions of this article and shall be accompanied by proof satis- 33 factory to the secretary of state of the moral character of the appli- 34 cant. 35 § 4. Section 25.17 of the arts and cultural affairs law, as amended by 36 chapter 61 of the laws of 2007, is amended to read as follows: 37 § 25.17. Supervision and regulation. The secretary of state shall have 38 power, upon complaint of any person or on [his or her] the secretary of 39 state own initiative, to investigate the business, business practices 40 and business methods of any such licensee which relates to this state's 41 or any other state's ticket sale or resale law, or in regards to ticket 42 sale or resale practices generally. Each such licensee shall be obliged, 43 on the reasonable request of the secretary of state, to supply such 44 information as may be required concerning [his or her] such licensee's 45 business, business practices or business methods provided that the 46 information requested is related to the complaint which forms the basis 47 of such investigation. Each operator of any place of entertainment shall 48 also be obliged, on request of the secretary of state, to supply such 49 information as may be required concerning the business, business prac- 50 tices or business methods of any licensee provided that the information 51 requested is related to the complaint which forms the basis of such 52 investigation. The secretary of state shall have the power to promulgate 53 such rules and regulations as may be deemed necessary for the enforce- 54 ment of this article. 
 S. 4418 3 1 § 5. Subdivision 1 of section 25.23 of the arts and cultural affairs 2 law, as amended by chapter 110 of the laws of 2018, is amended to read 3 as follows: 4 1. In every principal office or branch office, bureau, agency or sub- 5 agency of any licensee under this article, there shall be conspicuously 6 posted and at all times displayed a price list showing the established 7 price charged by the operator of the place of entertainment for which a 8 ticket is being sold by such licensee, together with the price being 9 charged by such licensee for the sale or resale of such ticket, so that 10 all persons visiting such place may readily see the same. The licensee 11 shall also on request furnish each purchaser of a ticket with a receipt 12 showing the same information. Further, if the licensee conducts business 13 through the use of the internet, the same price list, or hyperlink to 14 the same, shall be conspicuously displayed on the internet page on which 15 tickets are accessed. In addition the licensee shall publish in a 16 conspicuous place, or hyperlink to on the internet a statement clearly 17 detailing the required guarantees required by section 25.07 of this 18 article. 19 § 6. This act shall take effect immediately; provided, however, that 20 the amendments to sections 25.03, 25.10, 25.13, 25.17 and 25.23 of the 21 arts and cultural affairs law made by sections one, two, three, four and 22 five of this act shall not affect the repeal of such sections and shall 23 be deemed repealed therewith.