THE TAYLOR SWIFT BILL IS NOW LAW
The Taylor Swift Effect now carries over to state legislation too.
Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz has signed a new law that is meant to increase protections for online ticket buyers. The state’s residents will be guaranteed more transparency and protection when they buy ducats to concerts, sports, or other live events, under what’s being called the Taylor Swift Bill.
House File 1989 was introduced by Minnesota legislator Kelly Moller who was miffed at not being able to buy tickets to Swift’s 2023 concert at U.S. Bank Stadium in Minneapolis on the Eras tour.
Ticket sellers are now required to disclose all fees up front and also to prohibit resellers from selling multiple tickets, among other measures. This applies whether the event is held in Minnesota or a ticket is purchased by a Minnesotan, like maybe Jesse Ventura or Fran Tarkenton.
The title of the bill refers to the year Swift was born, as well as her monster album of the same name. Fittingly, Walz signed it at First Avenue, a downtown Minneapolis club that has hosted some of the state’s best-known artists, including Prince, The Time, The Replacements and Hüsker Dü. Taylor Swift is not a Minnesotan, but the state's legislators know how to get headlines in 2024.
Minnesota joins Maryland as one of the few states to pass legislation that protects ticket buyers, the bill’s supporters say. The law goes into effect on January 1, 2025, and applies to tickets sold on or after that date.
In an email, a spokesperson for StubHub told the Associated Press, “StubHub has long advocated for legislation that protects fans from anti-competitive and anti-consumer practices in the ticket-buying process.” The email added that StubHub looks forward to “continuing discussions with policymakers to advance policies that provide more transparency, more control and more choice for ticket buyers.”
“Never in my wildest dreams did I imagine that we would be at a bill-signing for House File 1989 at First Avenue," Moller, a Democrat, said.
The bill is being hailed as a victory for music fans, but it also means we will now be inundated with even more ticket requests from our mooching nieces and nephews.
