Proposed DC Bill Takes Aim at Resale Market with Price Cap, Ban on Speculative Tickets
A newly-introduced bill in Washington, D.C. aims to restrict certain types of resale tickets.
DC Councilmember Charles Allen is introducing the Restricting Egregious Scalping Against Live Entertainment (RESALE) Amendment Act of 2025 to the Council of the District of Columbia. The proposed bill would cap resale at face value plus 10%, ban speculative ticket sales, and require secondary resellers who move more than 50 tickets a year to register with the DC government.
The bill would also require all-in pricing. Those who violate the resale cap or fail to register could result in a $10,000 fine, the bill proposes.
Allen spoke at a press event at the D.C. venue The Anthem, noting that “right now, people who want to go to a live show in DC are competing against companies and scalpers who make a lot of money by immediately scooping up as many tickets as possible and re-selling them at a much higher cost than the venue or performer is asking.”
| READ: TICKET Act Passed Unanimously by House Committee |
“A $40 ticket could end up reselling for over $1,000,” Allen said. “The result is fewer fans can afford to see their favorite artist at one of the amazing venues DC has to offer. These middlemen are making millions by driving up prices, with the profit exclusively going to the scalper and never to the artists or venue. They aren’t performing on stage, they aren’t running a venue – they’re just making it all more expensive.”
This proposed bill mirrors the National Independent Venue Association (NIVA)-supported “Fix The Tix” coalition, which backs the Fans First Act that is effectively a rehash of Live Nation Entertainment’s specific outlined legislative priorities. That coalition, which includes multiple entities with significant ties to former Live Nation head Irving Azoff, also triggered letters from hundreds of artists – many of whom are represented by Azoff or other Live Nation allies like Red Light Management’s Coran Capshaw – asking for Fans First to be passed.
Ticketing organizations like StubHub and TicketNetwork have called-out NIVA‘s convenient support of Live Nation’s public relations efforts, as the company is currently the subject of an antitrust lawsuit alongside its subsidiary Ticketmaster by the Department of Justice, alleging monopolistic and anticompetitive practices.
