MAIN Event Ticketing Act Clears US House Committee Unanimously

The MAIN Event Ticketing Act cleared the House Energy and Commerce Committee on 16th September by a 36-0 vote. The bipartisan bill, H.R. 2713, aims to update the 2016 BOTS Act, which already bans software used to bypass ticket purchase limits.

Under the new proposal, ticket issuers running sales services would have to maintain technology to enforce their own posted limits. They would also need to report known attempts to circumvent those controls to the Federal Trade Commission within 30 days and take reasonable steps to improve affected systems. The FTC would publish a website naming issuers that fail to meet those obligations and share complaints with state attorneys general.

Penalties start at $1,000 per violation and $10,000 for each day a violation continues, with intentional violations carrying an additional $10,000 minimum charge. The final House wording has not yet been published, so some legislative detail remains open.

The bill was introduced by Tennessee Republican Diana Harshbarger and Louisiana Democrat Troy Carter. Carter framed stronger enforcement as a way to keep fans from being “priced out or misled,” while Harshbarger pointed to tickets reappearing at higher prices after scalpers buy them up. A Senate version from Marsha Blackburn and Ben Ray Luján has also advanced through committee.

The vote lands while Live Nation and Ticketmaster face an FTC and seven-state lawsuit over allegations that brokers evaded purchase limits and profited from resale. Live Nation supports the MAIN Event legislation, though it disputes the claims in its own case. The House bill now waits for a full floor vote.